Grist and Glue are new font releases from Alias —  Thanks to Gareth Hague / Alias for the images and font development info below

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As their names suggest Grist and Glue share an idea. Broadly that is making stencil letters using simple shapes.

Grist was designed originally as a logo proposal for art-pop band Fischerspooner. It was one of a series of ideas exploring ways of taking an upper case serif font and making it ‘graphic’, so like a logo rather than a typeface. I tried this in various ways – by making the serifs thicker, or making the serif oversized and angular. These generally weren’t very successful.

The most successful version stripped out the thin stress of the typeface and added a circle as an occasional serif. This made a dotting effect when set as multiple words. This was presented, to be rejected and a more neutral serif typeface used in what became a very untypographic series of record sleeves (also discussed elsewhere and on alias.dj).

Having written a blog post and reminding myself about the project, I wanted to develop this serif stencil circle typeface further. As it happened during the Fischerspooner project and in a fit of enthusiasm I had drawn a complete A-Z.

What I liked about the idea originally was that the typeface was made up of these big, dramatic shapes, either the circle or bits of circle or these swashy triangles or rectangles. There were no small fussy shapes, so it could be cut out and used as a stencil. The serif was a useful connecting device and the letters were, generally, readable.

As I developed the character set rows of circles became diagonal lines or dashes, so accented characters, or currency, hash or @ signs (etc) became these codified, braille-like shapes. I enjoyed designing them. As a headline typeface they were free of at least some of the rigours of clarity, and able to rely on impact.

As I was designing these – particularly @, © – I noticed that I was removing the seriffy connecting swash and the characters were getting more simplified and abstract. It was or could be a separate idea, and I developed the typeface Glue from these.

It is more clearly a typeface from a limited set of graphic shapes. It is modular, but its grid forces the shapes to work fit together in non obvious ways making non obvious shapes. Its limited modular structure means that shape arrangements are recycled, with an A flipped to make  a 7, or X flipped to make a Z – I’m rather proud of these typographic firsts, I suspect they’re my only ones.

So it is semi abstract, but readable. It expects the reader to try quite hard, expecting them to decide for themselves whether its design makes it worth the effort.

Grist and Glue are available from FontShop.

http://alias.dj

http://alias.dj/blog

The changing faces of Bowie (2013) by Blam and contributors.

A limited release print has been created exclusively for the V&A and will only be available during the David Bowie is exhibition.

Screen-printed matt white onto rainbow holographic, 240gsm Mirri paper.

To create The Changing Faces of Bowie, designer Blam approached over 100 artists and designers and invited them to produce the word ‘Bowie’ in a favourite or bespoke typeface of their choice or creation. The response to the project was overwhelming, a demonstration of the widespread love, respect and admiration that exists for Bowie. Blam has combined 101 Bowies – a dazzling array of typographic styles, logos and symbols representing the constantly changing and ever evolving style of the artist David Bowie. Including contributions from Build, The Chase, Spin, Nom de Strip, Studio NMO, Stockholm Design Lab, Monocle, v23, Paul Belford, Design Project, Corey Holms, Brett Wickens, Johann Zambyski, Pentagram, Crispin Finn, Wallzo, Blam, Anthony Burrill, Wallpaper, Martyn Atkins, The Designers Republic, Trevor Jackson and Jonathan Barnbrook.

The print is available to purchase here

Thanks to Mark Blamire for the images | info

More info |  Blanka |  Print-Process

Sign Painter Documentary

Directors: Faythe Levine & Sam Macon

There was a time, as recently as the 1980s, when storefronts, murals, banners, barn signs, billboards, and even street signs were all hand-lettered with brush and paint. But, like many skilled trades, the sign industry has been overrun by the techno-fueled promise of quicker and cheaper. The resulting proliferation of computer-designed, die-cut vinyl lettering and inkjet printers has ushered a creeping sameness into our landscape. Fortunately, there is a growing trend to seek out traditional sign painters and a renaissance in the trade.

In 2010 filmmakers Faythe Levine and Sam Macon began documenting these dedicated practitioners, their time-honored methods, and their appreciation for quality and craftsmanship. Sign Painters, the first anecdotal history of the craft, features the stories of more than two dozen sign painters working in cities throughout the United States. The documentary and book profiles sign painters young and old, from the new vanguard working solo to collaborative shops such as San Francisco’s New Bohemia Signs and New York’s Colossal Media’s Sky High Murals.

The book published by Princeton Architectural Press in November 2012 features a foreword by legendary artist (and former sign painter) Ed Ruscha.

All Photos © Signpainter Movie

More Information

http://signpaintermovie.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/signpaintermovie/

Press inquiries: signpaintermovie@gmail.com

LetterScapes

A Global Survey of Typographic Installations

Anna Saccani

Fans of vernacular typography and ‘SuperGraphics’ will love ‘Letterscapes’ by Anna Saccani, A fantastic photographic survey – featuring some of the best large scale typographic installations from around the world

Press Release info

LetterScapes is a tribute to the power of type writ large. 
A global survey of one of the most creative areas of public art – 
large-scale typographic installations – featuring work by 
nearly forty practitioners.

Today we are bombarded with words – public spaces are saturated with a discordant mix of messages. But sometimes a sentence, a word or even a single letter can stop us in our tracks. LetterScapes features thirty-seven such works from all over the world, by artists and designers with large international followings.

Photographs, maps and diagrams explore each project in detail, and an introduction highlights the cultural importance and common themes of the works featured. Interviews with key designers provide a personal insight into why they chose words over images to transmit their message, how the locations for their work are chosen, how they selected the material and the typeface, and how they think their work connects with its particular landscape or setting.

Includes work by Ahn Sang-soo • Ashton Raggatt McDougall • BBPR • Joan Brossa 
Cardozo Kindersley Workshop • Paul Carter • Caruso St John
 Chermayeff & Geismar • Estudio SIC & Buj+Colón • FA+ • Ian Hamilton Finlay
 • Catherine Griffiths • Rudolph de Harak • Robert Indiana
 • Intégral Ruedi Baur • Ilya Kabakov • Richard Kindersley • René Knip
 Attila F. Kovács • Maya Lin • Karel Martens • Anton Parsons
 • Michael Bierut / Pentagram • Paula Scher / Pentagram • 
Roberto Behar & Rosario Marquardt • Maarten de Reus • Pierre di Sciullo
 • Smith-Miller+Hawkinson

Anna Saccani studied Visual Communications and Multimedia Design at IUAV, Venice. She has worked as a graphic designer and writes for such architecture and design magazines as Casabella.

More Info

http://www.thamesandhudson.com/LetterScapes/9780500241431

The Company You Keep worked closely with Dave Kerr on venue naming and branding, through development of collateral and signage of The Beaufort. A bespoke typeface reflecting iron dock cleats and American sporting insignia’s formed the basis of the identity.

You can see more work at their site — TCYK

The Geometry of Type

The Anatomy of 100 Essential Typefaces
Stephen Coles Foreword by Erik Spiekermann
Thames & Hudson
Publication date: 21 January 2013

The Geometry of Type explores 100 traditional and modern typefaces in loving detail, with a full spread devoted to each entry. Characters from each typeface are enlarged and annotated to reveal key features, anatomical details, and the finer, often-overlooked elements of type design, which shows how these attributes affect mood and readability. Sidebar information lists the designer and foundry, the year of release and the different weights and styles available, while feature boxes explain the origins and best uses for each typeface, such as whether it is suitable for running text or as a display font for headlines. To help the reader spot each typeface in the wider world, the full character set is shown, and the best letters for identification are highlighted. This beautiful and highly practical work of reference for font spotters, designers and users is a close-up celebration of typefaces and great type design.

• A beautiful and highly practical work of reference for for font spotters, designers and users that celebrates typefaces and great type design inclose-up.

• Features 100 popular typefaces, grouped according to 17 primary type classifications.

• Feature boxes explain origins and chief attributes of each typeface, as well as its best uses, such as whether it is suitable for running text or as a display font for headlines.

Author

Stephen Coles is a writer and typographer. After six years as creative director at FontShop in San Francisco, he now edits the websites Typographica, Fonts In Use and The Mid-Century Modernist. Stephen is a regular contributor to Print and Codex magazines, a TypeCamp instructor and a member of the FontFont TypeBoard. He also contributed editorial content to the most recent edition of FontBook:Digital Typeface Compendium.

Erik Spiekermann founded MetaDesign, Germany’s largest design firm, in 1979 and FontShop in 1988; he now runs the design agency Edenspiekermann.

Further Information

http://typeanatomy.com/

Inspired by kindergarden crafts and everything lo-tech, I played around with something most people have tried; potato printing. Using nothing more than potatoes, a knife and ink, I carved out simple letters and printed them on paper. Scanning them all, and picking out a variation of three version of each letter, I ended up with a extensive set of characters that allowed me to compose anything I wanted and keep that handmade impression. More here at KalleGraphics

Slanted #19 / Magma Press Release Information

Slanted # 19 – Super Families organized a big family celebration. We are engaged in this issue with the large families (depending on the case, font families), and put their pedigrees an amazing range of variation of the day. They are characterized by a variety of cuts, which spread open to the extremes – a spectacle of Hairline to Ultra Black with compressed to extended because for everyone. In addition, immediate relatives are also represented in Sans Serif, Semi Serif, Slab, Rounded, etc..

In addition, we are pleased to present numerous essays and reports:
Unit Gothic & Uniform Set Gothic, wood type as precursor (David Shields Austin TX U.S.) About box (Frank Wiedemann, Berlin, Germany), Japanese Graphic Design: Not In Production (Ian Lynam, Tokyo, JP), on typographic super families (Julia tower, Berlin, Germany), as No One, but the cases for all! (Maurice van Brast, Weimar, Germany), Mr & Mrs Eaves: A Type Family (Emigre, Berkeley, CA, U.S.), Beyond the interpolation – Draft Font Family with Superpolator (Stefan Claudius, Essen, DE) and The bowlers Bros by Terry Wudenbachs (Buffalo, NY, U.S.).

A special feature of this edition are the many wonderful photographs:

Royal Families (thanks to Ken Johnston Historical Corbis, Brooklyn, NY, U.S.), princesses and football hero (Daniel Schumann, Erkrath, DE), Alison (Jack Radcliffe, Baltimore MD, U.S.), Life on Both Sides of the Border (Joseph Rodriguez, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.), Stranger Than Family (Matthew Avignone, Chicago IL, USA), The Other Family (Nicola Lo Calzo Paris, FR), A portrait of community life at Castle Tonna (Roger Hagmann, Blankenhain, DE), Salt & Truth (Shelby Lee Adams, Pittsfield, MA, U.S.), caches (Sirin Simsek, Cologne, Germany), Miner’s Families (Song Chao, Beijing City, CN), Portrait of a Family (Todd Danforth, Blackstone MA, U.S.).

In an interview, 10 × 10 families gave us expert answers to ten questions – with Łukasz Dziedzic (Typoland, Warszawa, Poland), Hannes von Döhren (HVD Fonts, Berlin), Peter Biľak (Typotheque, The Hague, NL), Christian Schwartz ( Commercial Type, New York City, NY, U.S.), Nadine Chahine (Linotype, Bad Homburg, Germany), Ian Party (swiss typefaces, Villette, CH), Erik van Blokland (LettError, The Hague, NL), Paul van der Laan (Bold Monday, The Hague, NL) and Yanone (Kromsdorf, DE).

We also spoke with Albert-Jan Pool (Hamburg, DE) on the future of FF DIN and what he thinks of other DIN writings, Panos Vassiliou about his magazine publisher Parachute (Atheen, GR), Andreas Frohloff and Ivo Gabrowitsch (font font, Berlin publication, DE) on the importance of large families in one of the most important international font foundries, Olaf Leu (Wiesbaden, Germany) on the tasks of writing systems, Thomas Marecki (Lodown, Berlin, DE / Blurb, San Francisco, CA, U.S.), the ” The Icons of Lodown “, Philippe Apeloig (Paris, FR) about his work and what inspires him.

The eight-page gatefold shows alongside historic family photos from Corbis something very special: a genealogy of the most modern families, the Indra Kupferschmid records for us.

Slanted Store # 19
Super Families

Publisher: MAGMA Brand Design

Release: 30.08.2012
size: 164 pages
Format: 24 × 32 cm
Language: English, German

http://www.slanted.de/

Counter-Print

The ninth edition of newspaper, Eight:48, is out now and has been renamed Counter-Print. It now consists of three papers and runs to 56 pages.
Paper #01 focuses on the art and design of freight and heavy goods vehicles, taking a global view on the history, symbolism and craft behind their ornamentation. Paper #02 entitled, ‘new work’, offers a snap shot of some of the best work Counter-Print have had sent to them over the past quarter, as well as inspiring pieces they have come across in galleries and online. Finally, Paper #03 is an attempt to tie up Eight:48, as they move forward with Counter-Print. Its brief montage of new and old articles, drawn from issues one to eight offers a timely look back on all eight themes that have shaped the paper so far.

Specification:

56 pages

289x400mm

4 colour throughout

£6 (with free P&P to the UK)
Counter-print Issue 09 is available to purchase from here

‘Alphabet Truck’ project photography —

Eric Tabuchi http://www.erictabuchi.fr/

Competition
Keep an eye on the Typetoken twitter feed this Friday 31st – we are starting a fresh retweet competition to win the latest issue of Counter-Print

Twitter: @typetoken

Logotype
Michael Evamy

Logotypes – wordmarks, monograms and single-letter marks – are where the verbal becomes visual; where elements that are usually designed to speed the eye across the page invite it to linger; where the choice of font is never less than meaningful; where spaces and spacing are significant; where the composition of words and characters carry weight; where letterforms and even fragments of letterforms can evoke attributes, atmospheres, emotions, events,places, personalities and periods in history.

Once it has become familiar, a logotype is registered by the brain in much the same way as a symbol: as a single, visual entity rather than a set of related verbal ones.

Featuring more than 1,300 international typographic identities, by around 250 design studios, this is an indispensable handbook for every design studio, providing a valuable resource to draw on in branding and corporate identity projects.

Examples are drawn not just from Western Europe and North America but also Australia, South Africa, the Far East, Israel, Iran, South America and Eastern Europe. 

Contributing design firms include Pentagram, Vignelli Associates, Chermayeff & Geismar, Wolff Olins, Landor, Total Identity and Six as well as dozens of highly creative, emerging studios.

Retaining the striking black-and-white aesthetic and structure of Logo (also by Michael Evamy) and Symbol, Logotype is an important and essential companion volume. Logotype will be available from September 2012.

*Competition*

Win a copy of Logotype

Typetoken are running a ‘reweet to win’ competition

Laurence King Publishing will randomly select from the retweets a winner of the book.

Keep an eye on + follow the typetoken twitter feed for details.

Follow on twitter here:  @typetoken

More Info

Laurence King

@LaurenceKingPub

Michael Evamy

@michaelevamy

Melvin Galapon: T.E.A.M Together Everyone Achieves More

16th August — 1st September 2012 Kemistry Gallery, 43 Charlotte Road London EC2A 3PD

T.E.A.M – Together Everyone Achieves More is the brainchild of graphic designer/ illustrator Melvin Galapon.

Galapon has collaborated with three of the UK’s most exciting illustrators/ artists of today, Hellovon, Pomme Chan & James Dawe, aiming to combine his own fascination of geometric shapes and patterns with his collaborators individual style and creative vision.

“Each collaboration is a separate project with that artist, although having said that, from what we’ve done so far there seems to be a visual theme of hard-edged lines mixed with organic flowing forms, which I guess is a reflection of my thinking and each of theirs.”

T.E.A.M showcases and explores the idea of working together to produce something more than what can be achieved alone. Exploring and collaborating with others has resulted in a range of different outcomes, producing an exciting collection of work on show.

—

“My fascination with working with type came while studying on my MA and trying to work out what I was interested in beyond just pixels. Once I’d researched deeper into the technology behind pixels and the history behind them I was opened up to a whole new world that really helped me to push my work to where it is today. Although with my earlier work it was all based on simplified pixelated type and has developed over the years into being more geometric and distorted. I have an absolute fascination with type that is borderline illegible to the point where you can just make out what it says from a certain angle or distance, which you either love or hate me for”

Melvin Galapon

—

Melvin Galapon lives and works in London creating an eclectic mix of Portraits/Typography/Installations & Pattern work all taking inspiration from his interest in analogue Technology/Pixels & TV Screen Signal Distortions. His work has adorned the pages of Wired US/UK, Wallpaper*, Creative Review and he has worked with brands such as Nike & Nokia. He’s been featured in numerous magazines around the world and has also exhibited in London, Singapore & Tokyo.

INFO

http://togethereveryoneachievesmore.tumblr.com/

http://kemistrygallery.co.uk/about

www.mynameismelvin.co.uk

hellomynameismelvin.tumblr.com/

https://twitter.com/_mynameismelvin

RUN by Monica Bonvicini

Internationally-renowned artist Monica Bonvicini has designed a flagship artwork for the Copper Box in the Olympic Park.

The artist has created three nine-metre tall letters forming the word ‘RUN’,made of mirrored glass and mirrored stainless steel.

In daylight, the letters will act as a mirror for visitors and reflect their surroundings, and at night the letters will become more transparent and glow with complex internal LED lighting.

Monica Bonvicini’s inspiration for the work comes from musical references such as ‘Running Dry’ by Neil Young and the Velvet Underground song ‘Run Run Run’, which have also influenced her previous work. Inspired by the many uses of the Park, it was a natural choice to return to these works and the word ‘run’ for this permanent landmark.

Photography | ODA Art Commissions | David Watson

Euclid BP | Emmanuel Rey | swisstypefaces.com

It is not easy to bring a new design into the well-known field of Futura.
I would not like people to consider Euclid BP as a revival.

Since it’s first use, at this time exclusive, in 2009 for the identity of a contemporary art festival in Switzerland (Les Urbaines), the aesthetic produced by Euclid BP was quickly adopted by young designers.

I have taken a radical approach to basic geometry to design a typeface with a strong impact and self-identity, which was actually the opposite of Renner’s aim for his Futura. He wanted to avoid decorative and non-essential elements: I want to show some wildness. It has to show attitude and to be immediately recognizable, to look as a 21st century font and not as another wise revival of an early 20th century geometric font.

I consider myself much more of a contemporary designer, than a nostalgic one, and think that new aesthetics of fonts are needed in order to give graphic designers the necessary and essential tools they need to build an image that fits our time.

Emmanuel Rey

www.swisstypefaces.com

Fenland

Fenland is the latest typeface design from Jeremy Tankard Typography

— a 14 font typeface

Thank you to Jeremy for the images, information and contribution to this feature.

Fenland information and licensing

http://typography.net/fontfamilies/view/39

Extract from ‘Footnote’

Jeremy Tankard Typography Newsletter

From the very early stages of the design the intention was to create lettershapes whose underlying structure is approached differently. Modified in some way to achieve a fresh look. For instance, take the idea of how a shape is changed over time. Picture the lettering found on gravestones and how it is weathered and eroded by nature. The wearing away of these shapes may result in some elements vanishing, lines thinning or breaking and gaps appearing. Also think of the inscriptions found on tombstones laid out on the floor of churches; how these are worn away over the years by passing footfall.

In contrast to this natural process, could a similar idea be achieved mechanically. However, repeating a process such as photographically reducing and enlarging, again and again, results in an expected soft and blurred shape. A sans serif lettershape will become more rounded and soft, whereas the details of a serif letter will shrink and fade away. The result is expected and is dependent on the structure of the shape.

If the structure of the shape is changed, then arguably a fresh rhythm could be found. If the shapes are constructed instead of written, the relationship between thick and thin strokes could be readdressed. This would go some way in creating a different structure that could be explored across a range of weights.

Structure

One of the principal ideas that underpins Fenland is the way a metal tube collapses in on itself when it is bent. This notion was applied to a letter’s structure by shifting the emphasis of the stem weight.

The sketch above (picture 1) shows how the inside curve at the top bends inwards as the outside curve is flattened. This shift of emphasis creates a thin point where it would normally be thick.

As well as a change to the modulation of the stem weight. The construction of some shapes was reconsidered. For instance, an ‘f’ is generally drawn in two strokes; the arch curving over and down with the crossbar added. To break this momentum Fenland’s ‘f’ is constructed in three strokes; a crossbar, a straight stem and a hook.

Samples and information

Individual PDF showings are available on line at http://typography.net/fontfamilies/view/39. There is also a limited edition printed sample available, please email info@typography.net if you would like a copy.

Promotional codes for the launch of Fenland

There are discount codes available
Go to the Fenland page at typography.net to use them

To receive 50% off Fenland
use promotion code Fenland50
until end of day 21 March **

To receive 25% off Fenland
use promotion code Fenland25
until end of day 30 March **

This monotype typeface created by Synoptic Office, where the height of the letterforms is determined by how often a letter is used, is definitely a looker!

As described on Synoptic’s website, “this typeface maps the rhythmic ebb and flow of English.”

I find this fascinating, I hope you do too!

Typography / Computer Arts Collection Issue 2

The latest ‘Typography’ focused Computer Arts Collection looks to be of special interest to Typetoken readers.

The 224 page issue includes a 48-page special project, guest-edited by Shoreditch-based studio Sawdust. Co-founders Rob Gonzalez and Jonathan Quainton walk through the entire creation process behind a striking display font, produced exclusively for Computer Arts Collection, including video diaries and behind-the-scenes footage of the studio at work (available for secure download).

Other features include:

Deep behind the scenes of leading type-focussed projects, including Fontsmith for San Miguel, Dalton Maag for Nokia and Frost* for Typographic magazine

Extended interview with Jonathan Barnbrook, creator of the fonts Bastard, Sarcastic and Exocet

The enduring influence of Germany, Switzerland and The Netherlands on global typography

Further Information

Preview

Maya Vik is the bassist in the Grammy winning band Montée, having worked with Maya on the ‘AV’ exhibition for Canon I was asked to design and art direct the identity and campaign for Maya’s debut album – Château Faux-Coupe. The album became one of the best selling albums of 2011.

Gary Swindell – Design & Art direction
Pål Laukli – Photography
André Auster & Torun Raunedokken – Hair
Trude Mokkelbost – Make-up
Henrik Beck Kaempe – post production

Project Link — Gary Swindell

A Special Specimen

Special thanks to James Phillips Williams for the use of these images and text — A brilliant story

The story in James’s own words (from the amassblog)

type specimens represent a whole category of book collecting. i have a few in my design library but i do not collect them per se. accidentally accumulate is more like it. surely designers roger black, jonathan hoefler and matthew carter have many, many fine examples. this particular type specimen comes from a special place and a unique person. i have had it for more than a dozen years. as a student at the yale school of art i became friends with one of my professors, paul rand. mr rand and i both collected all things written and designed by jan tschichold. on a particular visit to mr rand’s home he asked me to sit down, said he had something to show me. he went back to his library and returned with a completely tattered old book. the spine was broken and it was in a horrible state. of course i loved it.

many pages had been torn out and many pages had letters cut from them. (it was mr rand’s practice to cut letters and use them in his compositions) he would also tear swatches from covers of art catalogs, books, whatever he fancied to use as a color reference for projects he was working on. i once saw a wonderful copy of typographishe monatsblätter with a three-inch chunk cut from it. i couldn’t bear to do this myself. anyway, mr rand turned page after page to reveal the most wonderful type specimens. however, since we usually spoke about tschichold, i did not understand what this book had to do with him. then mr rand closed the book and opened it from the beginning, revealing the inside front cover and the ex libris. it had belonged to none other than jan tschichold. my mouth fell open and mr rand smiled. enjoy, as I have.

(note – direct copy of non upper case setting from original source)

More Information

http://amassblog.com/
http://www.designmw.com/
http://www.tschichold.de/

An experimental typographic project by Riccardo Sabatini, which is a typeface inspired by old mechanics technical drawings, the steampunk visual world, and modern machinery, mixed and merged all together to form letters completely made by these elements, creating a mechanical look like typeface.
All based on the letter shapes of the Din Alternate Black font, and the elements have their origin in his old work, THE MATRIX STEAM.

MEKKANIKA on the Behance Network
Riccardo Sabatini (Design & Co.) on Facebook

London Typographica – Creating the typographic map of London

London Typographica is a project aimed at type enthusiasts in London. It is both a smartphone app and website, enabling type fans to photograph their favourite publicly accessible samples of type and lettering.

The smartphone app will upload photos to the website, and record the location automagically. Text and tags can be added to each ‘typograph’, to give it some context.

London is rich in both historic and new sources of public type and lettering. Much of it is either being replaced, or lost. Our aim is to record type as it changes.

www.londontypographica.co.uk

@LDNTypographica

Thanks to David Bennett | OPX for the images and information.

Evelin Kasikov CMYK embroidery | Handprinted Alphabet

I was fortunate to discover Evelin Kasikov’s cmyk embroidery letterforms project at this years London Design Festival – Check out more of her work at http://evelinkasikov.com

Thanks to Evelin for exclusive images of her current ‘Handprinted Alphabet’ project

Info:
These lowercase sans serif letterforms consist of four CMYK colours and 26773 stitches. They are printed with needle and thread instead of ink. First, a 4-layer halftone grid is created. Instead of dots, crosses are used to create halftone pattern. As in traditional printing, the screen for each colour is set at a different angle: Cyan 105˚, Magenta 75˚, Yellow 90˚ and Black 45˚. The screen frequency for original stitched letters is 3 lines per inch. Each letter consists of equal blend of CMYK colours, Cyan being printed first and Black last.

Typography Sketchbooks

Steven Heller and Lita Talarico

I personally couldn’t wait to see and get my hands on this book, I’ve been through it cover to cover and it really doesn’t disappoint! — Definitely one for the ‘Typetoken’ readers (IMO)

‘Typography Sketchbooks’ — the new book by Steven Heller & Lita Talarico (Thames & Hudson), is page after page of stunning and inspiring sketchbook images from 118 of the world’s leading typographers and graphic designers. The sketchbooks reveal the designers’ creative process — in-progress designs, scribbles and sketches, research, typographic experiments, word-image and logo designs.

The book’s image-focussed design showcases the work to maximum effect, with just the right balance of accompanying informative text about the designers’ creative process, their design philosophies, inspirations, techniques and influences.

Contributors include both world-renowned and up-and-coming talents: Ivan Chermayeff, Carlos Segura, Milton Glaser, Maira Kalman,Bob Aulfudish and Matthew Carter (US); Javier Mariscal and Patrick Thomas (Spain); Erik Spiekermann and Viktor Nübel (Germany);Peter Bilak and Enkeling (the Netherlands); and Jean Baptiste Levée (France), to name just few.

The book features 900+ illustrations over 368 pages, successfully managing to vary the pace, diversity and keep the reader interested by featuring playful and illustrative typographic sketches next to clean and calculated typographic drawings. Andy Smith, Alex Trochut and Javier Mariscal sit alongside Erik Spiekermann, Sumner Stone and Matthew Carter.

More Information

Getting Upper is a poster project and exhibition on display at the Pasadena Museum of California Art until September 4th, 2011

Twenty-six California-based graphic designers and artists were each asked to reinterpret one letter of the alphabet. The results are a diverse alphabet that speaks to the ways in which the originators were influenced by typography, language, graffiti, street art images and the letters around them.

Each letter has been screen printed in an edition of 100 and is available to purchase at the museum and at gettingupper.com.

More info: http://gettingupper.com/