“The grid system is an aid, not a guarantee. It permits a number of possible uses and each designer can look for a solution appropriate to his personal style. But one must learn how to use the grid; it is an art that requires practice.”—Josef Müller-Brockmann
Made popular by the International Typographic Style movement (otherwise known as the Swiss Style) and pioneered by legends like Josef Müller-Brockmann and Wim Crouwel, the grid is the foundation of any solid design. The Grid System is an ever-growing resource where graphic designers can learn about grid systems, the golden ratio and baseline grids.
A grid breaks space or time into regular units. They are all about control by establishing a system for arranging content. They compliment internal unity by strengthening the relationships between relative size (scale) and placement of all elements (display type, text type, images and white space).
Jan Tschichold wrote extensively on the application of the grid to typographic design in creating dynamic layouts of the typographic page.
The Golden Section or Golden Mean is often used to create a harmonious relationship between grid units. This system is, at it’s simplest form, exemplified by the Fibonacci Number sequence. 1,1,2,3,5,8,13… where each succeeding number is the sum of the two proceeding numbers. These numbers can then represent virtually any chosen unit of measurement from the millimeter to the mile and anything else in between.
