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‘The letterform’s characteristics rely on ornaments and contrast, which are both playful and mysterious at the same time. The same as the market engulfs the shopper with its array of stimuli’ -CP

Cristina Paoli’s slim coffee table book Mexican Blackletter takes a look at the importation of blackletter types into the Americas (via Spain) and subsequent vernacular adaptations in Mexico.

My favorite part is the breakout of multiple adapted forms, how they compare with each other (below) and how these forms have evolved into something distinctly Mexican.

Snag the book here. It’s a delightful read.

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, typography by steve
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In my intermediate typography course at the California Art Institute Sacramento, students tackle CD packaging design – with a slight twist. Inspired by Project Runway, I like to put limitations on the work to force the student to engage the project where inventiveness will lead to unusual results.

If I could get them to do everything in 24 hours, with Tim Gunn checking in, I’d try that too.

project limits
In this case, students have to work with a band (or recording artist) that they do not know anything about or (preferably) simply do not like. The more they delve into a genre foreign to them, the more interesting the results have been.

Pictured is student Isla Waite’s interpretation of the Megadeth album Endgame. Her decision to reimagine the lyrics into typographic layouts (inspired by the lyrics’ subject matter) led to a unique interpretation of the traditional stylings of Heavy Metal.

Megadeth: Endgame

Tags: design, education, music, typography by steve
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Opening April 8, 2010 at the Bayside Church in Granite Bay, CA is ‘From the Dead Sea Scrolls to the Bible in America,’ an exhibition featuring five pieces of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Also on hand will be some rare Bibles including (reportedly) an original by Gutenberg.

More information here. SacBee article here.

Found via Susan Poirier

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, exhibitions by steve
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I Love Typography takes a look at the holdings of the library of the Gutenberg Museum in Mainz. More than just Bibles.

Article here.

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, fonts, typography by steve
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Alice Savoie’s Capucine

Here’s a great article by Gerry Leonidas over at I Love Typography.

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, fonts, thoughts, typography by steve
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The concept of ‘negative space’ (or ‘white space’) as an important part of type design is very difficult to teach. The student either sees it right away, it clicks over time or sometimes the concept is just weird enough to cause them to back away very slowly.

It’s a up is down, left is right sort of thing. Pen strokes are important, but so are the parts that aren’t made by the pen.

Just the right amount of negative space defines the character and readability. Claude Garamond (c. 1480-1561) was a master at this; it’s one of the reasons his types are still incredibly popular today.

Here’s some cap E comparisons to chew on.

Plus, here’s a great breakdown of today’s Garamond interpretations (images below).

And, an interview with the master himself.

Cap Es found via Nina Stoessinger; Garamond comparisons by Barney Carroll

Tags: cool finds, education, fonts, typography by steve
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‘Nick Martens digs into the pages of the great dictionary that chronicles the history and development of the English language, and unearths some typographic gems.’

Great article about obscure typographic references in the Oxford English Dictionary. Read it here.

Photo found via emdot

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, fonts, typography by steve
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‘MoMA’s announced what might be its boldest acquisition ever. And it didn’t even cost anything: The ‘@’ symbol is now a part of the museum’s permanent design collection.’

Article here.

Pictured above, the @ symbol from Goudy’s Bertham font.

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, typography by steve
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‘This project has a dual goal of documenting the almost-lost skill of creating metal fonts and of capturing the personality and work process specifically of practitioner the late Canadian graphic artist Jim Rimmer (1931–2010)’

Richard Kegler’s long-delayed documentary, Making Faces: Metal Type in the 21st Century, has just secured just enough funding for completion.

For more about the film, go here and here.

Rimmer and Kegler

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, fonts, typography by steve
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‘Mac McGrew’s 1993 2nd, revised edition is an important book for any printer, collector, student or aficionado of letterpress type. Equally valuable as a typeface reference and an insightful history of the typemaking industry in America.’ –Letterpress Type

THE book on metal typefaces cast in America (hint: not all of them have been digitized) is Mac McGrew’s American Metal Typefaces of the Twentieth Century.

Long out of print, this 398 page resource is available once again. Snag your copy here.

Pictured: my dog eared, Post-It note filled edition.

Found via Steve Matteson

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, fonts, typography by steve
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One of the coolest printing history finds in the Los Angeles area is The International Printing Museum in Carson.

Tucked away in an industrial section and run by the incredible Mark Barbour, the museum hosts an amazing collection of rare equipment, The Book Arts Institute (Hi Rachelle!), The Wayzgoose Gazette, a gallery, library and more.

And now they have a new RSS-friendly blog-based website – sporting a new logotype (above) created by Gina Pirtle Simpson.

Click on any image to visit the museum’s website/jump.

Museum photographs by April Rocha

Tags: cool finds, design history, education, exhibitions, photography, typography by steve
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