Entries from September 1, 2007 - October 1, 2007
122. Your P's and Q's Parts 2 – 5.
Having received so many positive comments to scan the rest of this amazing book, I did just that. It's located here. I'll even put it in .pdf format over the weekend, if you would prefer to wait for that.
I found a 1945 edition that's available here and here. I have not re-found the source I used to purchase my 1923 copy, in bad shape though it may be. Let me know if you find it somewhere else. Enjoy.
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121. Your P's and Q's.
A colleague of mine introduced me to this great resource - a 1923 edition of P's and Q's - A Book on the Art of Letter Arrangement, by Sallie B. Tannahill. (A former teacher of lettering at Columbia University and a friend of Vojtech Preissig – the Czech typographer and book designer – whose work gets sampled frequently throughout the book.)
The goal of P's and Q's is to show the infinite variation and approach to letter design through an artistic lens via examples. In the introduction Tannahill states, "Well-selected letters, drawn with force and quality, arranged in good proportion, tone and color, and grouped . . . may be as fine and as complete as (any) design." My version of the book is badly in need of repair (notice the 'discard' stamp on the inside cover,) but I still posted scans of the entire Part I (chapters 1-4) on flickr, here. If there is enough demand, I'll post the other Parts. I hope you enjoy this resource as much as I have.
Jason
Thanks for all the feedback. I'll post the rest of this beauty in the next few days. In the meantime, check out Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour on XM today - it repeasts all day today. It's a great pick-me-up, even if you're not a huge Dylan fan. So good.
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120. Sanna Annukka.
Yet another example of someone else having a far better designer name, Sanna Annukka's portfolio is simply amazing. (I need a few double consonants in my name.) A lot of times digital and vector art comes across as easy or even software-produced - technically called computery - but here you will find inspired, whimsical layers of design and bold colors with a unique indigenous composition. You might have seen some of her work for the band Keane - but you should really check out these three screenprints: Arctic Lake, Autumn Garden, and Sunrise. Awesome.
The half-finnish, half-english artist has been profiled in Vogue, Computer Arts and Wallpaper magazine and considers herself a printer as well as an illustrator. Keep an eye out for her new projects which include a picture book, clothing and stationary.
(Thanks to Draplin Design, co. for the tip.)
119. The Old School Press.
When checking my usual links and blogs, I chased down a link on The Old School Press's site. That one link is great (though I can't remember where I got it from), about the making of a book on typographer Harry Carter,but the entire site – and their work – is worth a post all its own. The Old School Press, in their own words, "... prints and publishes new texts in limited editions with specially commissioned illustrations. We use traditional letterpress printing techniques, metal type, fine papers, and hand-binding." Located in an old school house (the reason for the name) near Bath, England, they produce beautiful books (example 2); works of art that combine the best of typography, letterpress, content, bookbinding and illustration. Sweet lord, It's almost too much. Since their site is a touch confusing to navigate, here's a few sublinks to get you going.
1. The Western Proof Press. Their main press for printing books and posters.
2. The Monotype Composition Caster - somehow manipulated to be run off of a PC!
3. The Printing of The Brick of Venice. A step by step gallery of their process. So cool.
4. A link to other private presses in the UK.
118. Designer Fishing Lures?
That's right, designer fishing lures. One of my favorite non-design blogs, Finkbuilt, recently completed a little project where he asked, "What would happen if you shipped 20 unassembled old-timey wooden fishing lure kits off to be finished by a bunch of artists?" The results are great and certainly worth a look. Each piece is accompanied by a little Q&A with the respective artist. It's always interesting to see how different people approach the same materials in various ways. Enjoy, and if you like tinkering and building things, bookmark Finkbuilt's blog.