Name: 【TED】Martina Flor: The secret language of letter design (The secret language of letter design (with English subtitles) | Martina Flor)
Uploaded: 2018-01-05T16:38:53.000Z
Duration: 12 min 16 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Translator: Camille Martínez Reviewer: TED Translators admin

Can you imagine what the word "TED" would have looked like

if it had existed during the Roman Empire?

An artisan would have spent days in the sun chiseling it into stone.

how would these letters have looked in the 80s?

They would have had electric, strange colors,

And if it were about superheroes instead?

inspired by -- in my opinion -- the greatest of all:

They tell us things beyond what they represent.

If we think about it, our days are full of letters.

people have felt the need to give language an image.

because language is the most important communication tool we have.

Some letters tell us that something is modern --

Others verify the importance and monumentality of a place,

There are letters not made to last long --

and neither is the opportunity they communicate.

And there are letters made by inexperienced hands

make us imagine what a place looks like inside.

When I moved to Berlin, I experienced firsthand

all the impact that drawn letters can have in our day-to-day life.

I arrived in a new city, which was exciting and novel for me.

Now, dealing with an unfamiliar language was at times very frustrating

I found myself several times at parties clutching my glass of wine,

without understanding a single word of what was being said around me.

And of course, I'd smile as if I understood everything.

I felt limited in my ability to say what I thought,

Not only did I not understand the conversations,

but the streets were full of signs and text that I couldn't read.

But the shapes of the letters gave me clues;

to understanding the stories enclosed in those shapes.

I recognized places where tradition was important.

Or I'd know when someone was trying to give me a signal,

and my gut would tell me it was better to stay away.

I could also tell when something was made to last forever.

The shapes of letters helped me understand my surroundings better

I was on the lookout for something tasty to take back home.

So I walked and walked and walked until I found the perfect bakery.

I see it, and even today, I imagine the master baker

dedicating the same amount of time to each loaf of bread

that the craftsman dedicated to each letter of this word.

I can see the bread, with just the right ingredients,

in the same way the craftsman drew the ends of the letters

I see the master baker placing the buns over a thin layer of flour

I think of the craftsman putting the mosaics in the oven one by one,

The love for detail that the master baker has

is reflected in the attention that went into creating this sign.

Without having tried their bread, we already imagine it tastes good.

And I can vouch for it; it was delicious.

Just like when you make bread, it requires care in its preparation,

Our alphabet is at the same time my raw material and my limitation.

Subtitles ListPlay Video

【TED】Martina Flor: The secret language of letter design (The secret language of letter design (with English subtitles) | Martina Flor)

material

audience

dedicate

represent