Men of Letters Tony Forster & Phill Grimshaw

This week a new exhibition opens at the Bolton Museum celebrating the life and work of two hand-lettering and typographic designers with strong connections to the town. The show is a retrospective, featuring largely unseen work from the late Tony Forster (1941–2008) and his friend and one-time student Phill Grimshaw (1950–1998); the ‘Men of Letters‘. It has been brought together by lettering artist (and Tony’s son) Dan Forster, in collaboration with Graphic Design Lecturer Anthony Roocroft at the Bolton School of the Arts, part of the University of Bolton.

Tony Forster was described by Tony Di Spigna as ‘The Herb Lubalin of England’ and by David Quay as ‘the Fred Astaire of letters’. It’s therefore no surprise that he scooped over 25 international design awards across his career, despite never undertaking any formal design education. His work can still be found in use by stationers Paperchase (see below), and he was responsible for many other logotypes, including those for BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and 1970s Rock Band 10cc. He also turned his hand to type design, creating two faces with the International Typeface Corporation of New York (ITC). He was a prominent member of the Manchester design scene from the early 1960s until his death, and taught for many years in Bolton.