Better Letters

People

Tracey Thorne’s Hand-Painted Jamaica

Tracey Thorne introduces the Jamaican sign painting scene, and some of the sign painters working there.

Projects

Chicago Style by Nike

Frisso creates an alphabet, logotypes, showcards, and 'manifestos' for Nike's Chicago Style campaign.

Events

Baptized By Beefcake at Poster House

Bold, and sometimes terrifying, hand-painted African film posters at exhibitions in New York and London.

Projects

Archie’s Artsy Alphabet, Now at Tate

Artist and sign painter Archie Proudfoot designs art-inspired series of alphabet mugs for Tate Gallery.

Books

Arcade Game Typography

Toshi Omagari talks about the development of his Arcade Game Typography book, and the alphabets inside.

Books

Eleanor Crow’s Brushes with London’s Shopfronts

Eleanor Crow captures London's historic shopfronts in watercolour, and now they're published in a book.

Films

Meet Josef Samuel, Vienna’s Last Signpainter

Short biopic about Josef Samuel, fourth-generation Viennese sign painter, and his sign painting museum.

History

The ‘Red List’ of Heritage Crafts

Lettering and sign crafts, some viable, some 'endangered', according to the Heritage Crafts Association.

Events

Letters out on the Tiles in London

A chat with Hana Whaler and Jake Tyler about their work on Tactile and the Alphabetics Anonymous team.

Books

A Love Letter to Amsterdam’s Curly Letter

Book about Amsterdam's 'curly letter' is an informative and visually rich guide to the vernacular style.

People

‘Recovered Letters’ from Juan Nava

Spanish graphic designer Juan Nava recreates lettering on old signs in his 'Letras Recuperadas' project.

Events

Festival of Writing at the British Library

British Library exhibition on writing, through the history and practise of 30 different writing systems.

Events

Tokyo Letterheads: Now Bigger in Japan

Review of Tokyo Letterheads, Asia's first international meet, hosted by Peter Liedberg, aka Letter Boy.

Books

Discover Denmark’s Signs with Jakob Engberg

A look inside the visually inspiring Danske Skilte (Danish Signs) by Copenhagen Signs' Jakob Engberg.

History

Signwriting & Type’s Enduring Relationship

Type Tasting's Sarah Hyndman on the recurring role of signwriting in the development of typefaces.

History

‘Tickets’ and the French Sign Painter in London

'Tickets' and his sign painting partner are trying to make ends meet in London's sign game in the 1870s.

Books

The ‘Brush Master’ of Indianapolis

New Half Letter Press book profiling work of Indianapolis sign painter Jasper Travis, aka Brush Master.

History

A Curtain Call for the Theatre Advertising of Old

Theatre curtain from Ludlow, Massachusetts hosts a time capsule of c.1920s hand-painted advertisements.