Formatting Multigraphic Artefacts

Research Field I

In many cultures, both ancient and modern, the modes in which contents are transmitted in written artefacts are not homogenous. Different graphic systems, such as script and pictures, as well as variations of these systems, such as different scripts or script styles, are at the disposal of the producers of written artefacts. Arranged on the artefacts’ surfaces according to conventional rules, or patterns, they form a multigraphic visual matrix that offers, and often demands, multi-modal ways of reading.

This research field explores the modes and functions of the interplay of the elements of this visual matrix in multigraphic written artefacts. In particular, it seeks to develop both methods and terminologies to describe, analyze, and compare the way in which multigraphic artefacts were and are produced and used in different cultures of writing, and in particular, how the patterns of visual organization in multigraphic written artefacts were and are changed and adapted both within and across cultures of writing.

Spokesperson: Hanna Wimmer