Communication Through Design (2024)
Robynne Raye
This is a podcast. I share with design students about a blackletter typeface called Fraktur, and its historical context to the German people. Fraktur rose to popularity during the early part of WW2 as a favorite nationalistic symbol of Hitler. The podcast is narrated by a man who notices the typeface in usage on a sign on a bus in Dresden— it wasn’t just the words, but the fact that the signage was in Fraktur. To many Germans, this communicates something more sinister due to the font choice.
Even if the sign was in a neutral font, it’s message was not welcome; this bus is driven by a German man. But the fact that it was in Fraktur changed the message’s meaning. For most people, Fraktur is just an ornate font, but to many others— not just German people— it means Nazis and death camps. The point of this podcast and subsequent discussion is that your design decisions matter. Knowing the history of a typeface affects your message.