 Press reports  |
|
 Comments |
 |
 |
The book itself breaks down over 8 colours: blue, black, green, purple, orange, red, white and yellow. Each colour has a code (blue 000, yellow 111). For the code, two colours are always combined, to give, as is the case with DNA, a code of 2 x 3 characters. A variety of symbols are arranged per colour code (i.e. 64), and these often relate to each other. Thus the earth is blue on blue (000.000) and this also covers cube, space, plain, plateau, patriarch, ground, floor, tile, sand, mass, etc. The opposite colour coding often uses opposing symbols. Under yellow on yellow (111.111) you find sky, divinity, dot, time, pointed, outside, etc. |
|
Imagine, then, that as a graphic designer you have a project to do on a bank. You start asking yourself about all the things a bank stands for. A bank keeps your money SAFE. It also gives you an opportunity to make your money EARN MONEY, thereby offering you financial freedom. Picking up the book you will notice that money can't be found in the alphabetical list, but you will see possible synonyms in the banking context, i.e. capital. Capital is green on green (010.010). Other symbols to be found there include nature, cross (+), a snake, a stream, an apple. These symbols all have a possible connection with money and capital, and particularly with making it yield a return. A lot of money is green in colour, such as the American dollar or American Express card. The cross is also a plus sign, a positive value, as money can be. The snake is often a symbol of fruitfulness, for yield. A snake can also be the curve of a trend on the stock exchange. The stream can refer to fluctuations in cash flow. An apple can also be something for a rainy day. These symbols can assist you further in the process of composing an image. |
 |
If you want to show your customer, the bank, how safe their institution is you can emphasise stability. For stability (not in the book), you need good foundations. Foundation can be found in the book under the code green on white (010.110). Other symbols in this group: the well (always ensures a fresh supply), property (a certain basis for money, a safe investment), roots, bank, safekeeping (with a safe as the symbol), etc. These symbols, and their colour combination, can also help you further on your way. |  |
|
And you can spend a little more time searching through the list of symbols. At the lecture given by Inez Michiels on 4 november, when the book was presented at the Book Fair, they illustrated the symbols using a whole series of examples from web sites, campaign images, bank logos, etc. And they were briefly able to show that cartoons also make use of these codes, such as Tintin. Tintin dresses in white on blue, while his enemies are often in black on red. Under white on blue you find symbols such as hero, giant, tower, shine, ascend, etc. Black on red gives symbols such as blind, dragon, two-headed, prostitute, mafia, devil. You say, then, that Hergé sees Tintin as a knight fighting a two-headed dragon. In addition to lectures on the possibilities of this book and the research underlying it, Inez Michiels has also given lectures and lessons specifically for students of graphic design, in which they make an analysis of form and colour. For example, among other things, there is a series of lessons on the significance of graphic shapes and textures, and their relationship with colour. Contact Inez Michiels via genecode@skynet.be. Bie Luyssaert Flemish Design Vlaanderen |
|
Links: |
 to start |
|
 Language of colours and symbols. Review of the book Symbolen Constructies in ONZE TAAL. Is imaging language colour sensitive? Do colours reinforce the meaning of symbols? Graphic designer and illustrator Inez Michiels knows for sure. In her book Symbolen Constructies she has collected 597 religious, mythological, political and other symbols, such as 'vine', 'tongue', 'earth', 'patriarch', et cetera. These universal symbols are, according to a scientific analysis of the colour associations they arise, classified into 64 chapters of colour combinations ('white on blue', 'blue on white', 'blue on blue', etc.). This book is not only targeted to language and social scientists, but also to graphic designers. |
|
Links: |
| to start |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sound and colour. From the manual Goed voor Druk, Vossen Misjel, Co-author, Teacher Arteveldeschool (Gent) - training communication management and graphic techniques. President Beroepsvereniging Grafische Vormgevers (b.G.V.) (2) Like there exists a relation between colours and forms some start experimentally from the point that there exists a relation between sounds and colours. The genetic semantics (teaching of meaning that originates in the coding transmitted by the genes or inherited) lays i.e. a relation between the order of vowels in the name of an enterprise and colours to apply or intuitively applied colours. In publications about genetic semantics there always appear 8 x 8 tables to classify colours, sounds, forms etc. The represented table classifies vowel combinations and compares them (horizontal / vertical) with colours. We learn from this that ‘green above white’ corresponds with the vowel combination EIA as in Kredimat. The reason why organisations and products often use determined colours is the same as why they have chosen determined sound forms. This colours and sounds have following the genetic semantics the same codic meaning. In Synesthetisch Experiment, applications of genetic semantics on graphical and musical forms, Ferre Alpaerts represents this table:
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bibliographic note: (1) Goed voor druk, grafische communicatie en grafische technieken, een praktische gids, (graphic communication and graphic technics, a practical guide), Marc Mombaerts / Misjel Vossen, Academia Press Gent 1999 - p’s 232, 233. Note on English translation. (2) Beroepsvereniging Grafische Vormgevers. Literally: association of professional designers. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Links: |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| to start |
|
|
|
| Language as a means for art. Herman Deceuninck, active in the Esperanto movement, wrote two articles as a response to the exposition Van Toverlantaarn tot Multimedia (1) and on the publication Religie, Filosofie en Semantiek, one in the magazine MONATO (in Esperanto) and one in the magazine Horizontaal (in Dutch). During the festival Van Toverlantaarn tot Multimedia (24-26/3/'94) I made a remarkable discovery. Mr Ferre Alpaerts and Ms Inez Michiels wanted to show by means of 105 slides that a natural link exists between consonances, forms and colours. Behind the languages hides a universal code. Behind all sign systems hides a logical structure. The question is if a scripture is possible about which the signs refer to words, approximately as the Chinese scripture but then entirely systematic. This seemed to me an interesting idea to stand quiet for a while. In the first place a little word explanation concerning the disciplines on which their insight has been supported. In contrast to semiotics (sign teaching) which keeps itself busy with tracing and arranging signs and their external, referring meaning the main point of semantics (meaning signs) is the universal consistency of all signs and an inner, codic meaning. The main point of genetic semantics (where their analysis more specifically goes for) is, that the language power (this means largely the use of language and signs) relies in all its aspects and components on genetic code. Hereditary code. By evolution also language is, just like each form of 'mental life' (pivots of a sensual, emotional as intellectual nature) originated from the oldest signs, viz. the hereditary code, particularly these of the DNA All well-known living beings use for the transfer of hereditary characteristics, the same chemical code which exists out of four "characters", which correspond with the consonances a, e, i and o. According to the genetic semantics the inner signs to which is referred are also 'the characters' and 'the words' of the DNA (the genetic code). The codic meaning of words was set out in a semantic dictionary, of which a second edition is in preparation and which would contain 6000 words (also on computer disc), classified according to the genetic code among others on the foundation of the sound form in several languages. Different languages don't always use the universal genetic code in the same manner. For this reason some words can only be translated with difficulty. A codic e.g. musical reproduction of a text and its translation would clarify many of those difficulties. Nevertheless it must be possible to reproduce the inner meaning of words and word links graphically, musical or e.g. body movements (like in eurhythmics) by genetic code. Colour, graph and consonance. Since 1991 Inez Michiels has come up with the idea to reproduce these genetic words by means of musical and coloured graphic forms (in sum there are 64 possible combinations) that can be compared mutual with each other. Of these 64 form - and colour combinations as a matter of fact was made a very beautiful screen print poster in 8 colours. One is able to consider it as a splendid example of how language and art can be transformed to an artistic whole. Perhaps a possibility exists here also for example by supporting a word in several languages mutually coloured - graphic and musical. The link that is laid by genetic semantics between phonetic forms and colour is also retrieved in the scientific study of Eva Heller into the functioning of colours. Another fascinating idea to bring art and language with each other in diphthong seems to me for example the tonal development according to the genetic semantics in several language versions of the poem Language by Maja Pnajotova, a Bulgarian living in Antwerp. This language can be raised to art, proved for example also by the character artist Gaston De Mey with its multilingual letter structures as a sign of the internationalisation of culture. (Workshop Gaston De Mey, Balgerhoeke 40, 9900 Eeklo). Computer programme. Finally it must also be mentioned that there is thought about a computer programme, where colours, graphic forms, music, attitudes and movements, as well as words and word associations are reflected by genetic code signs, united within a governable whole. This programme must allow the user to modify the parameters of a system and to follow the effects of it on other systems, to compose ranges or to interpret them etc.. A summary of the methods of the genetic semantics has also been explained in the book Religie, Filosofie en Semantiek, in which 17 subjects from the history of philosophy are dealt with. Notes on English translation. (1) Van Toverlantaarn tot Multimedia. Literally: from projector to multimedia, exposition organised by the Antwerp (Belgian) school * and in which we participated as Genetic Code. |
|
Links: |
| to start |
|
in universal communication