Week 2 — Assignment “Letters Tour”
Project 1 1A
Discuss + Studio due Sunday (end-of-day). Reply to other people’s posts by Tuesday.
Project 1: Letters in the World—a visual study of letters in your world and creative translation of this knowledge into an image series. This project begins with you taking walks around outside with your phone/camera—and documenting every instance of letters and numbers or linguistic marks you encounter—get up close and capture detail. Pay attention to the unique formal/language qualities, materials and colors, and situated contexts of these design artefacts. In the weeks ahead, you will use these photos—to create a presentation of different organizations and use them in translation to create original visual compositions.
1/
Discuss:
Watch the 2019 Typographics Festival presentation by Ed Fella—Analog Letterforms to the Nth Degree
Write your response (200 words minimum) as a comment to this post.
Questions:
1. When describing his work, what does he mean by connotative and denotative?
2. What is Fella’s teaching philosophy?
3. On a personal note, what inspired you about Fella’s design work and life story?
Reply to at least two other people’s posts (below). Due Tuesday.
2/
Studio:
1. Do a walk(s) yourself and photograph all the letters, numbers, other language marks (municipal, graffiti, weathered) you encounter.
2. Take a minimum of 50 photos, don’t edit your process yet. Be exhaustive and thorough in your documentation.
3. Upload all your raw photos to your folder on one drive.
4. Write a brief description (2–3 sentences or more) of your project so far below as a comment as well. Where did you walk? Include the link to your work on one drive in your comment.
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Links:
further inspiration—watch A Tour of Barcelona Mosaic Storefronts with type designer, Laura Meseguer.
Edward Fella: Letters on America, Lewis Blackwell
[from Typographics]—”This talk took place in The Great Hall at The Cooper Union on June 14, 2019. The livestreaming and video recording were made possible by a generous sponsorship from Google.
“My fascination with the seemingly unlimited variety of forms that a proscribed letterform can take before it becomes illegible and ultimately just a trace. This presentation is a quick career-long traverse, with examples ranging from what is still communicative graphic design to a fanciful purposelessness, which could be called art.
“Ed Fella is a former commercial artist and professional graphic designer who practiced for 30 years in Detroit. After receiving his MFA from Cranbrook in 1987, he taught in the graduate Graphic Design program at CalArts in Los Angeles for another 30 years. He is currently a Professor Emeritus and continues working on campus in his studio on a wide-ranging series of his own idiosyncratic projects that stubbornly resist categorization although they freely partake in the conventions of typography, photography, illustration and fine art. The recipient of many awards, his work has been extensively exhibited and published during the last several decades.”
When Ed Fella is describing his work, the terms connotative and denotative are seemed to be metaphors in his work. The denotative meaning refers to the literal, dictionary definition of a word. In typographies, that would be a letter that is easily and immediately recognized and conveyed as the natural form. For the connotative meaning, he refers to the emotional feelings that are invoked in art. For his work, he tends to push the letterforms to create a more expressive form that goes beyond just the basic denotative meaning, but giving the typography an emotional and conceptual aspect. Fella’s teaching philosophy strikes a deep connection of experimentation and self-expression. He tends to stray away from the basic typographic rules and embrace the “exit-level designer” persona of free form and pure exploration. He wanted to express art rather than a form of communication. On a personal note, I really enjoyed how Fella captured so much meaning in an everyday letterform. He took his designs and turned them into some that added such depth and emotional context that values true art. Fella was rooted in experimentation, which is a core in art as you are coming up with something new, unique, and cool to you. He wasn’t afraid to fail and as an artist, that is the best mindset to have and something I strive for in my artwork.
Hi Jiyah! I really like how you described what denotative and connotative imply in typography based on what Fella was saying. Your explanations are very clear and concise and get the point across immediately. I also agree that I enjoyed how he captured so much meaning in letterform! His creativity with letters is also very inspirational.
Hello Jiyah, I think that your personal interpretation of Fella’s work to express lettering as an art rather than simply communication is really meaningful, especially in the way you speak about his connection with experimentation. Thank you for you response!
Hi Jiyah, I also liked how Fella captured meaning in his works. Experimentation is a huge part of art and it allows you to think about what you like about a certain piece and push out of your comfort zone. The art you create doesn’t have to speak true to other people so long as its something that you like.
Hi Jiyah,
I love how thorough your response was this week! You seem to really appreciate Fella’s presentation and approach to typographic design. I’m also a big fan of experimentation in art, I think it’s important to be constantly evolving and trying new things. I look forward to seeing your shots in the coming weeks.
1) In Ed Fella’s work, his connotative typography is colorful, less legible, and more experimental. It breaks the boundaries of typical typography. The connotative work is more indicative of a more creative approach to typography, while the denotative work is more simplistic. His denotative works can lack color, be less expressive, and be easily read.
2) Fella’s teaching philosophy is “Rules are taught to be broken, made to be broken only exceptionally.” This motto is witty and interesting. I think it’s perfect for an art teacher to profess to their students because that’s how most art movements have been established: by breaking rules and coloring outside the lines. It allows us to wonder: if I’m going to break the rules, I might as well do it with a bang.
3) What inspired me about Fella’s work is his use of color in his connotative works. He has no limits on color and the way he uses the entire composition for the prompts. I also really love the stylization of the letters; it helps make the word unreadable and more abstract. His work is able to take a simple sentence and create an entire art piece, which is hard to do. I also really admire his teaching philosophy; it’s a cool spin on the idea of breaking rules. Overall, Fella’s work is super inspiring and makes me excited to do my own typography design.
Hi Kaelyn,
I enjoyed reading your posting! I completely agree with your first two points of the connotative vs. denotative meanings in Fella’s artwork. He tends to stray more to the connotative pieces and attempts to push those boundaries and make it something unimaginable. Likewise, his teaching philosophy is surrounded around breaking the boundaries that were once set. I forgot to include the direct quote but he aims to create artwork that goes a little outside of the lines or off the page. Something that helps his stick out more than anyone else. Lastly, I enjoyed hearing what inspired you about Fella’s work. Color is a huge thing in art, and can strike so many different emotions. He does a great job at analyzing color and pushing it to a point many wouldn’t think is possible!
Ed Fella uses the words connotative and denotative when describing his work. He describes denotative as being a readable, legible piece of work, while using connotative to describe works that have a midcentury commercial look, meaning the words mirror the idea, but it’s not meant to be read, everything but the form of the letter. Fella’s teaching philosophy is “rules are taught to be broken only exceptionally”. I believe he means the rules of art are taught, how to be taught techniques and learning and growing beyond those techniques. Another way I would describe his philosophy would be thinking outside of the box. I was really inspired by Fella’s beautiful work. I didn’t even know this could be a type of art form, but after seeing the examples of how he does his work, I would be very interested to create something of my own like that. I also find it inspiring how beautiful works of art can come from making your own type of font. I would be most interested in making a connotative piece rather than a denotative piece. I think both had really great examples of work, but the connotative pieces spoke to me more, without using actual words.
Hi Cam! I agree with what you mentioned about Fella’s teaching philosophy. I think he was iterating that it’s important to learn all the basics and proper techniques, but to push yourself to test new things and new limits while keeping those rules in mind. I found it inspiring as well how he really made lettering into an artform! Hopefully we’ll be able to learn that as well.
My project is going well so far! I chose to go downtown for my walk. It was really cool, actually paying attention to all the different types of lettering being used for signs and flyers. There’s one alleyway downtown that has a bunch of cool graffiti. Hopefully, my photos came out well for this upcoming project!
my photos: https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EtBvZoUt9JxBsfog9tIGNycBPeZc8IzwHsDbTwX_OUssWw?e=lhVGlh
1. Connotative is referred to as the implied meaning, while denotative is referred to as the actual definition. For example, the word “club” has the denotation as a select group, but has the connotation as a late-night gathering place. Ed described how connotation and denotation used in typography, using a standard, sans serif font can get across an easily legible denotation, while stylizing words based on the connotation can have a more nuanced meaning.
2. In Ed’s philosophy, he mentions that “rules are taught to be broken,” then amends this with “do do what they say.” This mantra helps develop an understanding of yourself as an artist, as well as an understanding of the meaning behind the technical skills.
3. I respect his expansive typography career, it is so incredibly diverse and unique. He uses many different versions of form, varying from anthropomorphic to more legible. I aspire to be like that in my work, having that kind of creativity and commitment to my craft.
In my project, I was aiming more towards the public street art around Greensboro. I started off around campus, and noticed a lot of graffiti, signs with stickers, and many other typographics while exploring Dram & Draught and downtown. These pieces showcase color, space, line, and texture, I brought them up because I hope to explore them in my future project.
Here is the link to my photos: https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:i:/r/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/Documents/_Rachele%20Riley/teaching/F%202025/ART%20341/Ivan%20Nguyen/Week%202/IMG_0925.jpeg?csf=1&web=1&e=PheHM2
Hi Ivan, I also like how Fella’s work is diverse and unique. He doesn’t just stick to one type or one certain font for his works, and I find that very interesting. Some are legible and some are hard to make out, and that’s something I want to look into more in my works instead of sticking to one specific style.
*This is just a test reply, Luna was having technical difficulties *
Hi Ivan, I think your answer for question 2 is inspiring in a way. I never thought of that saying to essentially meaning that the rules are meant to be broken as a means of self expression as an artist!
1. Connotation refers to the implied meaning of something, whereas denotation is the literal definition of something. For example, “group,” “mob,” “crowd,” and “clique” all have the same denotation, but vary wildly in their connotation. In his presentation, Ed Fella describes how connotation and denotation can be used in typography. Using a single, default font like Helvetica can provide a basic, readable denotation of text, while stylizing words based on the concepts and emotions they hold can provide a deeper, connotative meaning.
2. In his own words, Fella says “rules are meant to be broken.” He then elaborates that this breaking is only to be done exceptionally, adding “Do do what they say.” He tells the audience to both follow and question what instructors say, so that you can develop an understanding of both yourself as an artist and the rationale behind proper technique.
3. I personally admire his steadfast commitment to analog typography, in all its intricacies and frivolousness. Towards the end of his presentation, he shows a piece that reads, “similar differences & different similarities: fragments and details.” This is meant to exhibit his love for every tiny little component of text and their ability to be manipulated by analog media, regardless of the constraints of legibility.
In my project, I wanted to focus on ephemera and public street art around Greensboro. I started by taking notice of the signs, stickers, and other typography I would come across on my way to and from the cafeteria, then later expanded my search to the area surrounding Dram & Draught and downtown. I’m looking forward to experimenting with all the variations of color, texture, and movement found in my shots, and utilizing them to create something even more interesting and complex. The link to the raw images can be found below.
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EjybPMx-roFMj7S0l8iBLgEBijwTnpD_uKfCP7vJZVlOXQ?e=cwdWt9
Hi Luna,
I loved your point about developing a better understanding of yourself as an artist and the rationale behind proper technique. I also enjoyed your admiration towards Fellas intricate lettering style. I love his work and I’m sure you will make some great work in the future! I also love watching ephemera videos on TikTok.
When describing his work, Ed Fella mentions that denotative is when something is very readable and easy to make out, as well as being logical. Connotation, on the other hand, is when something is more artsy and dissolved. It’s postmodern and hard to read, which is the point of connotation; it’s not meant to be read.
Fella’s teaching philosophy is rules are meant to be broken. He wants students to question what the instructors might say, but to do it anyway. It is meant to be seen as a way to challenge one’s thinking.
Something that inspired me about Fella’s work is how he plays with different types and lettering. He might layer them to change them around to look like something unique. I always found layering and art deco to be cool, so its very interesting to see how he plays with that technique throughout his works.
About my work: I took photos on Tate street, Spring Garden, the UNCG tunnel, and on North and South Main street in Kernersville. I tried to stay in places close to each other and places that I knew many people have been to maximize the different types of fonts or lettering I would encounter. Link to onedrive folder: https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/_layouts/15/onedrive.aspx?id=%2Fpersonal%2Fr%5Friley%5Funcg%5Fedu%2FDocuments%2F%5FRachele%20Riley%2Fteaching%2FF%202025%2FART%20341%2FLeah%20Simmons%2FWeek%202&ga=1
Hi Leah,
I enjoyed reading your discussion post! You made some really good points about what you took from Ed Fella. I agree with the fact that connotation is meant to be pushed beyond its boundaries. Ed Fella wants it to be postmodern and unrecognizable, making it unique. I also like you approach on his teaching philosophy and how you related it back to professors. Many times, others may have opinions but they don’t align or address the situations that you are targeting. Going beyond those boundaries help with challenging a new way of art and thinking. Lastly, I have always had a love-hate relationship with layering. It always either works out very successfully or the complete opposite. I really do, however, enjoy his approach of layering and it brings about new techniques that I may try in the future!
1. Fella uses “denotative” to refer to design that is logical and legible and has the primary purpose of delivering information to the audience. This is contrasted by connotative design that at its extreme is abstracted more and more until it is either illegible or close to it. The primary purpose of connotative works is to be visually appealing over actually being readable to the viewer. They are two ends of a spectrum that most things fall between.
2. His teaching philosophy is that “rules are taught to be broken.” Since students are shown what exists and is accepted but not expected to follow it directly, they have a baseline for their own exploration and ideas for what the norms are for them to stray from.
3. I think Fella’s experimental and hand-drawn approach and extreme dedication to his work (as shown by his hundreds of filled sketchbooks) is really admirable. I also love the amount of personality that is obvious in all of his works with his distinct style of lettering and coloring. His works all have a similar look to them while still all being unique from each other. I really like the bright colors he uses and how many he uses together at once while still making them flow well together.
Studio:
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EuI5Ix-V855CnPEmHuuIFa4BQkPmIM7H2MjYtg5b-YuMaQ?e=AjJfGy
My images document my walk to and back from campus. I cross an older road with construction on it, go through a school parking lot, and then through a residential street. These three distinct areas, despite being very different in a lot of ways, had a lot of similarities in what kinds of text I found in them!
Hi Stephanie! I think the way you explained Fella’s teaching philosophy was great. I also feel like this philosophy can also be applied to his work. He breaks the boundaries of typical typography work: making the words unreadable, using enormous amounts of color, and defying the space around the words. You can tell he is truly passionate about his creation as well as his teachings.
Hi Stephanie,
You seem to understand the presentation pretty well! I do think there is one piece you may have missed from Fella’s approach to teaching, which is “do do what they say.” Meaning, listen to your instructors but question their instruction. I think this makes you a better artist by both helping you find your own voice and learning the reasoning behind the instruction. That being said, I’m really eager to see what you do with your shots taken this week. I look forward to seeing the finished piece.
Hey Stephanie,
I agree that Fella’s philosophy of “rules are taught to be broken” is important because it gives students a foundation before encouraging creativity. *Thumbs up*!
Hi Stephanie, I do agree I enjoyed his analog style, to me it makes it fun to read and definitely adds personality what makes him unique. As someone who loves to add details and texture to my art it was refreshing to see his style and choice of rugged or bold detail in his work!
Hi Stephanie, I love the way you explained his philosophy, constraints are there but its up to the students to break the constraints. The pictures you took are nice my favorite one is the one at the construction site.
In the video, They used two examples of letter work to represent connotation and denotation.The image on the left represents denotation with its clean, easy to read structure, basically the standard lettering. The image on the right represents connotation and those work has more “Chaos” or exaggeration. Some of the letters completely derailed it common structure and turned into symbols.
According to fella himself, His teaching philosophy was ” Rules are taught to be broken, made to be broken exceptionally” and “Do__ do what they say”. While both statements almost contradict each other, it highlights the importance of being a Student, learning the craft and follow orders, while also being your own master, building your own lane and status. His decades of being a graphic designer is extensive. Throughout his time doing works of popular styles of design while doing his personal works. The way fella does his design and lettering has a more experimental, avant-garde or postmodern. Many of his work range from either very expressive or distorted, to the point its unreadable. His growth into popularity, while slow, is an inspiration from just doing gigs to being in museums and clothing. It shows how far being original and experimental can take you.
Fella describes denotative as very legible and logical. He describes denotative as mid- century commercial art. He feels like connotative art shouldn’t be able to be read.
His teaching philosophy is “Rules are taught to be broken, made to be broken only exceptionally”.
Something that inspired me about Fella’s design work is the way he was able to draw out the letters without them being legible but still knowing what letters he was drawing. I like how he isn’t just stuck on just one way of typography, him going from denotative to also doing connotative and not limiting himself. Its interesting hearing about his experience about the 90’s post-modern vs modernist typographic war. He explains more about him not just sticking to one style in this period of time. I think him having 160 sketchbooks filled with finished drawings is fascinating. When I sketch most of the times it’s me trying to get ideas and not necessarily finishing my drawings. I love how colorful and interesting his art is to look at. It’s very pleasing to my eyes. Its cool seeing his lettering for the brand Supreme, his work is being shown all over the world which is very inspiring. I also like how highly he speaks of other designers as well.
My project is going well so far, I’m just hoping the pictures I have are good enough. I’ve been walking around campus trying to see what i could find.
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/r/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/Documents/_Rachele%20Riley/teaching/F%202025/ART%20341/Aaliyah%20Jones/Week%202?csf=1&web=1&e=2x25Le
Hi Aaliyah,
I think I really follow a similar approach as you described with your sketchbooks. I mostly use mine to jot down quick concepts or crude outlines rather than make finished pieces like Fella did.
1.
When describing his work, what does he mean by connotative and denotative?
As fella describes connotative he means it having the form or maybe not having the form, the visual impression of the word rather than just its literal meaning. Denotative can mean understanding its language at first, regardless of its artistic form. In other words as we take a look at his works we can see the visual direct meaning through connotative language. I think this is interesting as his works, from my visual make perfect sense and I can see the literal meaning and the emotion through it maybe through seraphs or licks as Fella mentioned in the video.
2. What is Fella’s teaching philosophy?
Fellas teaching philosophy was that “ Rules are meant to be broken, made to be broken only exceptionally”. In understanding this I believe he was meaning to bring to light how in typography and design there are many rules such as hierarchy, alignment. These rules exist to teach structure and ensure that there is a communication between the audience and the work. But that there can be a breaking of this rule, it can be abstract while still communicating to a certain audience just like visual art. I think what Fella is saying is you learn the rules first and you can earn the right to break them and shape them not randomly. Intentionally,I think his message to students is growth can happen when you experiment but experiment with a system in place to help strengthen your work.
3. On a personal note what inspired you about fellas design work and life story?
What Inspired me most about Edward Fella’s design work and life story is the way he stayed true to his own creative path. He worked for years as we saw in commercial design, following industry rules and producing work for clients, but then he later in his career began to reinvent himself he did this through experimental, and hand drawn, and analog typography, not only this but he decided instead of chasing trends or worrying about marketability, he crafted in his work in a style that was unmistakably his own, it was unconventional, full of personality and very playful.
Comment for my 50 photos:
For my project many of the places I walked were parks or sidewalks that maybe ran through my neighborhood. I hadn’t really felt I’d explored the entirety of these parks that were in close proximity to my home and was curious to explore them. I wanted see what textures I could find beneath many of the signs and small words etched or written into wood or on metal or plastic.
Hey Ausariah,
I agree that his life story is inspiring, especially how he reinvented himself later in his career and stayed true to his own creative path. *Thumbs up*!
When describing his work I feel like Fella is describing his connotative work as more experimental, abstract and emotion based than his denotative work which is more legible and straightforward.
Fella speaks on his teaching philosophy during his time at the California School of the Arts, which was “rules are taught to be broken” which he describes as a concept in which students both question what they are told, but still learn from their experiences and what they are being taught about their art. For example, students should question what their professors are telling them, but still take in new information and learn from it to understand the basics of their craft. Once the basics are understood, students can bend them to create their own style.
I really like how expressive and bold Fella’s work can be, and I hope I can utilize these themes in my own work moving forward in this class. I also think that his philosophy of “rules are taught to be broken”, is very inspiring in terms of finding your own style as an artist. There are always new ways to bend the rules of an artform that you were taught, and by experimenting with convention like Fella does, you have the opportunity to create something new.
For my project this week, I walked around downtown Reidsville, NC and Danbury, NC which are relatively close to where I live. From my own experience, I found that in the areas that I explored the majority of letters were from government buildings, personal objects like tools or local business advertisements.
Link:
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EhYwxpNiNl9AtzrNYcgugeMBanAMvT5uYdfxrwM2z1impA?e=w0ZRRz
Hi Madison!
I really like how you mentioned that students are able to really make their own style after the basics are understood. I think many times people get very focused on their individualism that they forget to learn from the people who were masters of the craft too.
When describing typographic work- both his own and other works- Fella uses the words connotation and denotation. He describes denotation as being more logical and legible, where one can read the words very easily. He explains that the more connotative style is meant to mirror the idea behind the writing and the imagery, calling it more “artsy”.
Fella also discusses his teaching philosophy in the lecture. He mentions that he teaches that rules are meant to be broken, but only exceptionally. He explains that he wants students to question and think about what the professors say and teach, but also to follow through and actually do what they’re instructing. This seems important in order for the students to learn the basics while continuing to grow and develop their own critical thinking and designing skills.
Fella has been in the industry for a very long time, which I think is inspiring in itself. I think one of my favorite parts of his lecture was how he seemed to showcase how he was constantly experimenting with new styles, ones that kept emerging as the times changed. This showed his willingness to adapt while also maintaining his creativity, and I believe that this is a useful tool to have in the imaginary toolbox for a career such as his.
I did a loop to Tate Street and back to my dorm for my walk, taking pictures along the way. There were actually quite a few places with cool lettering that I didn’t expect.
Here’s the link!
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EoSukK7Z1SpIhZvYgG38hRgBzbQGtET7zMF8luoIbwHH1Q?e=iIMJLE
Hi Karin, I also thought it was cool to see how he is willing to adapt his work to current times while keeping his style in it. The pictures you took for the assignment look good, i didn’t even think to walk down Tate Street but i did circle through campus to see what i could find.
Hey Karin, I like the clarification you used in question 1. Saying that connotative leans towards art rather than being created to be read and understood.
Hi Karin,
I totally agree that being open to adaptation is important. And the ability to put passion and deep thought into your work is as well. Time is valuable and any practice is good practice. I also walked down Tate street for some inspiration and found some great examples of typography!
When describing his work denotarive is made to be readable and conotative is supposed to be more abstract being harder to read. Denotative is in a more readable font or structured in a readable way so it would be more likely used in adverts or flyers. Which is alot of post modern typography based off of what he has said. The philosophy he goes by when teaching is that rules are made to be broken in special exceptions, and that the students should question what the professor is saying but they should still do it. So basically listen to what your professors are asking you to do but always think about it thoroughly. The thing that inspired me about his work is the way he goes about it. The sheer quantity of sketches he has and he said that alot of them he goes about by putting his pen, pencil, or other material to paper and just going until he feels as though he’s finished. I relate to the way he starts his work in the sense that im not really sure alot of the time where it will go but I try to capture how im feeling or what im thinking in the moment when I start sketching.
So when I first began I took photos during my imaging 2 class since I was on spring garden already taking photos for it. Then over the past couple days I’ve gone all around campus from spring garden to Sullivan to walking around the streets of spartan village. All of these photos I just decided to take with my phone.
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
Edward Fella is a commercial artist and graphic designer who spent three decades working in Detroit. His practice spans typography, photography, illustration, and fine art. Over the years, he has received numerous awards, and his work has been widely exhibited and published internationally. He says that he puts his “communicative graphic design to a fanciful purposelessness, which could be called art.” Fella says that the difference between denotation and connotation is that denotation is very readable, logical, straightforward, and a literal visual interpretation of the typography. Connotation is the feeling the word evokes and the emotional association it holds. He recalls that the problem with postmodern typography is that “you can’t read it,” and it is a true statement because postmodern typography is purely connotative; it’s not meant to be read, it is emotional or subjective. I really appreciated looking at his larger pieces that were drawings with the form, but they do not really say anything. His big drawings serve as a sort of decorative illustration in a series of gestural marks. I like how his typography shows communication and also abstraction, and it offers inspiration for designers to think out of the box. Fella’s teaching philosophy was that rules are taught to be broken, made to be broken only exceptionally, and he also mentioned that students need to question professors, but also simultaneously do what they say.
Hello Anna, I really enjoyed how you discussed Fella’s use of gesture and illustration in his larger drawings, as I was also very fond of them while watching his talk. I also appreciate how you used the term subjective when discussing his connotative work, as I feel that it is often intentionally left up to the viewer to decide how abstract works make them feel. Thank you for your response!
My work consists of a story of hanging out with friends or your post-academia life. It captures multiple photos of my journey from the night, from getting in my car in the deck to once I arrived and the actual hanging out part.
Fella said that Denotative refers to font letters that have clear letter forms that are easy to read. The text is often somewhat plain and relatively common within fonts. The direct opposite of this font type was connotative where the fonts are more stylized and harder to read. Some of the text that Fella showed that was connotative were barely legible, but that was the point, the font style was supposed to be artistic rather than to feed the view information at a glance.
His belief in teaching is that rules are meant to be taught but also were meant to be broken by exception. Most likely because to him letter form is something to be experimented with especially in a connotative sense where generally most rules of font can be bent.
Personally I find it interesting how willing he is to push the visuals of letter form for the sake of style. Something I find inspiring because it’s I recall the people around him not understanding connotative lettering because it goes against most rules of fonts and is mostly illegible. But as far as we see further into the video he shows us how far these forms could be pushed to create interesting designs.
Photos: https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/r/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/Documents/_Rachele%20Riley/teaching/F%202025/ART%20341/Darius%20Pettiway/Week%202?csf=1&web=1&e=IInNlr
These pictures are letter forms I’ve gathered from all over the college campus. I first searched near the outside of my dorm, but then walked around the music building to take pictures of some signs, graffiti, and road markings. After that I followed the paths from their until I was back at my dorm.
Hi Darius,
Firstly, I think you missed one of the mantras Fella mentioned in his presentation in regards to his teaching ideology. After he mentions, “rules are meant to be broken exceptionally,” he adds, “do do what they say.” This means that instructors are meant to be followed, as well as questioned. By doing this, you as the student can develop both your own voice as an artist and your own understanding of the material by questioning why it’s being taught.
That being said, I really enjoy the photos you’ve taken so far! The settings you used while taking these shots give a really interesting bloom effect, and I like the diversity in typeface you’ve chosen to focus on. I look forward to seeing what you do with these compositions in the coming weeks.
Hi Darius, I find it interesting that when Fella created his work to some it seemed as though there was no defined outline of a form for understanding, or spelling out words. when visually to me it did, as an artist I could make out what some words symbolized.
For my project as of now, I took photo of every form of lettering, numbers, language mark, and combinations around campus. These photos were taken from the house and residence halls to as far as the spartan village.
When describing his work, what Fella means by connotative is what the composition evokes emotionally, and what can be implied by the art in front of you. It is a more abstract way of thinking and seeing things compared to denotative which is what is literally meant by the composition.
2. Fella’s teaching philosophy is that rules are taught to be broken, only exceptionally. Fella explains that he has taken letter forms to the Enith degree and that this generation is taking his Enith degree to a new degree. He says that he is basically turning over his passion to the 21st century.
3. what inspired me about Fella’s design work and life story was that he is so wise in his knowledge of typography not only due to his age but his passion. He made his own alphabet which was really fascinating to me. He has spent many years drawing and doodling in sketchbooks with no plan in mind before starting each one, and some of these sketches went on to be featured in magazines and museums all around the world. I loved that he said that rules are meant to be broken but only exceptionally. I resonate with this because throughout my childhood I have faced backlash for doing things my own way, and many times the way I do those things works out for me as I had wished but knowing that I’m not doing what’s instructed can be hard to get comfortable with when there is backlash or people watching.
Hi Allison! What you said about Fella’s teaching philosophy was really interesting to me. I never thought interpreting what he say in that way. I love his passion for teaching and how he’s leaning into the fact that he gets to teach a new generation of people the same art he has a love for. Great answer!
For my images, I decided to walk around downtown Greensboro and was met with lots of graffiti. I chose to walk around campus as well and found some cool lettering on Tate street. I hoped to get more of a variety of fonts but was unable to find many digitalized fonts that I felt inclined to photograph.
When Ed Fella talks about denotative and connotative lettering, he means the difference between clear, easy to read design and more creative, artistic design. Denotative lettering is made to be read quickly and understood, it sends a direct message. While connotative lettering focuses on style, feeling, or cultural meaning. It might be harder to read but expresses a mood or idea through its look. Fella usually likes working with both types, using traditional styles for clarity and experimental ones to explore meaning, emotion, and history. He shows that letters can do more than just share words, they can also express ideas too. Fella’s teaching philosophy balances following rules and breaking them. He thinks rules are made to be broken but only on ocassions. This means he wants students to learn the basics of design and lettering but also to creatively and carefully push the boundaries . What inspired me about Ed Fella is how he wasn’t afraid to break the rules and do things his own way. He started in commercial design, but later in life, he shifted to more experimental, creative work that was totally unique. I really admire how passionate he was filling sketchbooks with tons of pages just for the fun of it. His story shows that you can always grow and transform yourself, no matter where you start.
For my project I walked through downtown greensboro and charlotte and gathered images of unique and intriqueing letters . I wanted to capture a lot of graffiti because I personally find the style eye catching and meaningful.
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/r/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/Documents/_Rachele%20Riley/teaching/F%202025/ART%20341/Jayden%20De%20Leon/week%202?csf=1&web=1&e=uvAY0h
You went down to Charlotte for the photos? Or is it just you going home for the weekend if not that’s some dedication.
When describing his work, Ed Fella uses the words connotative and denotative. He often explores both, denotation referring to text that is readable and logical. His connotative work however in contrast, is far more experimental and colorful, with words and letter forms meant to mirror an idea, rather than strictly define one.
Fella’s teaching philosophy follows the idea that “rules are meant to be broken […] exceptionally” and that students should question their professors, but still do the work they assign, as the students will gain value from their knowledge. He believes it’s a good thing to break free from traditional designs, but still worked with styles from the past and used them to influence his work.
On a personal note, Fella’s connotative design work inspired me the most. I typically prefer a more denotative design, but I admire that Fella has been able to build his career using a lot of experimental and expressive elements in his work. Also, the amount of sketchbooks he’s filled over the years is incredible. His dedication to his passion and dedication of being able to churn out concept after concept is so amazing. It seems like his has an endless amount of sketches.
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For my studio portion, I went around campus and throughout downtown Greensboro and gathered all kinds of styles of letters, words, and numbers. I really tried to capture lots of variety in legibility, texture, and font. Here’s the link!
https://tinyurl.com/2tdb9awj
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
https://uncg-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/r_riley_uncg_edu/EurDXQkP6hNJuoC9I4uzy5sBDC1sdF19ebEL1PG-4488Sw?email=ANCARVER%40uncg.edu&e=tqwpBl
I also found his transition in the way he goes about designing very interesting in concept. Going from a hardline way to straight let’s see where this goes.