More than Words

5 comments Classrooms, digital stories, digitalstorytelling

Aug 18

There's an interesting phenomenon that I've been observing as late and that is the visualization of text. By that I mean using words as graphics.

I remember back in the 1990's learning to create webpages using Dreamweaver, when we wanted to insure that a particular font was consistent across browsers and individual machines, we had to convert text to images. The first time I did this or was made aware of this it took a bit to wrap my head around the idea that the text was not really text but was actually a graphic.

In reality this isn't a totally new phenomenon. Poets have been using the shape of text as an integral part of their poems for centuries. E. E. Cummings for example used typography to "paint a picture" with many of his works. Today we view typography very differently thanks to our personal computers. The simple fact that we quickly recognize most fonts and have very strong feelings about some, suggest that text is no longer simply symbols that combine to form words but in a digital format can have added emotion and meaning.

My own work within my district often focuses on shifting notions of literacy that need to include a variety of media. Digital Storytelling becomes a major emphasis for helping teachers move beyond text and provide students with a balanced notion of what it means to be literate. 

This summer I was fortunate to share some of my beliefs, experiences and exploration into this at a number of conferences and shared a section I called "More than Words" where I demonstrate some examples of using typography as digital stories. Here are a couple of those examples:

Typography in Motion

 

I call this typography in motion but perhaps there's a more common/official term for this and feel free to clarify in the comments. The words definitely come to life and the art, design and placement of text in motion provide an entirely new layer of humor to this classic exchange. Searching youtube you'll find a plethora of these examples and generally they are created using software like Adobe After Effects which is not only expensive but pretty complicated. I was pretty pleased to see that the latest version of PowerPoint offers some features which may be able to allow you to create similar work but in a much more familiar, easy to use tool.

Search Stories

The 2010 SuperBowl featured this commercial for Google.

 

 

Youtube now allows anyone to create similar stories. It's not difficult to see the value in having students create these types of stories. The traditional instruction of sequencing takes on an entirely new twist as we use the common task of searching as a storytelling tool. 

In my presentation I go on to discuss wordle and things like text position in slides and graphics as other examples where text  can have a distinct visual characteristic. 

What I'm discovering is that understanding these new ways to use words and text can assist teachers that feel both resistant and fearful in shifting away from entirely text driven curriculum. It certainly doesn't mean that text is no longer valuable simply as written communication but it does help to open up the conversation around shifting notions of literacy. 

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  • http://nashworld.edublogs.org Sean Nash

    I really dig this topic.

    Typography in motion certainly works, though I’ve been using the term “illuminated texts” since finding it here a couple of years ago: http://www.awaytoteach.net/?q=forum/2 This is a really super resource. Some of the flash examples here are inspiring. But of course, as you say above… PowerPoint will actually do a nice job of this at a far easier entry price & learning curve.

    I have seen students connect to really rigorous pieces of text in this way. And really… to illustrate text in a meaningful way… you really do have to internalize the meaning of the piece. Awesome strategy for learning.
    Sean Nash´s last [type] ..Principals as Teachers Part II – Early feedback

  • @JenAnsbach

    Dean, this is excellent. I would love to get into using text this way with my 11th graders. Thinking of text as a graphic reminds me of the work of Jenny Holzer. I saw her work in the MoMA before she became popular with the “Right Now” Van Halen video. A useful way to think about written text in our graphic world.

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  • Mike Nantais

    Hey, Dean, neat examples. Here is another good one I show teacher candidates to show how words and images can be used creatively to tell a story. Perhaps you have seen it, but here it is:
    http://www.slideshare.net/ethos3/what-teachers-make-515731

    • http://ideasandthoughts.org Dean Shareski

      Thanks for that example too. I’d seen it before but it indeed is a pretty straightforward, yet powerful example of the blending of text and images.

  • http://drapestakes.blogspot.com Darren Draper

    I think people have gravitated toward creating graphics from text because it’s relatively easy. With minimal Photoshop skills even WE can make text sing. Still, when attempting to convey a message, tell a story, or persuade an audience, you get a lot of bang for your buck when using visually stimulating text-filled graphics.

    Who would’ve guessed, even three years ago, that this would so clearly be the case? I think watching the evolution of this field is as much fun as participating in it.

    Thanks for sharing, Dean. Good ideas, good post.
    Darren Draper´s last [type] ..Leadership Day 2010