What's Inside Issue 08 of BLAG (Better Letters Magazine?
Between the covers of the worldwide adventures in sign painting from Issue 08 of BLAG.
The arrival of BLAG 08 means that our adventures in sign painting have been rolling for four years now — how did that happen?! After the bumper Letterheads special issue, we’re back to business as usual with despatches from 18 countries and six continents. Read on for a sampling of the latest issue’s contents, and look out for more in next week’s digital companion.
The magazine’s 80 pages are once again completely free of advertising, thanks to paying members around the world 😃. Then, tucked into the alphabetic centre spread, is our latest limited edition poster insert: a guide to creating a flamboyant fairground Tuscan by Jill Strong. This extended ‘how-to’ is set on the back of the concertinaed poster which is a reproduction of the original skateboard that Jill decorated.
On the Cover
The photo that wraps around the entire cover was taken in the latter stages of Jill painting the skateboard. The board itself makes use of aluminium foil and flamboyants to achieve the metallic blue to green gradient. These are echoed on the masthead, with a gradient on the letter faces and a silver foil applied to the outlines with the plate created for BLAG 06.
As with previous issues, the masthead pulls from elements in the cover photo.
Contents
No advertising means that every single page is given over to what we’re all here for: the sign painting. As always, this ranges from the bitesize content in the ‘Sundries’ section to longer in-depth features, and everything in between.
Giving Thanks
All things BLAG would be impossible without the generous support of our industry sponsors and patrons. Please show your appreciation to our sponsors:
And thank you to our patrons: Blackout Signs & Metalworks; Chicago Sign Systems; Colossal Media; John Moran; Right Way Signs; Romana Schrift; Sepp Leaf Products; Skiltmaler Gundersen; Studio Sign Co.; Through the Wood Signs; and W&B Gold Leaf.
People First
Learning about the stories of individual sign painters and designers is one of my favourite parts of compiling the magazine. This often includes craftspeople whose work may otherwise have gone unnoticed.
In this issue, we honour the recently deceased Russ Thomas, whose portfolio includes a solid body of traditional British work. We also meet the dynamic design duo of Dorothy and Otis Shepard for ‘Inside Letterform Archive’, including their spectacular sign work for Wrigley’s gum. And ‘Ye Olde Sign Shoppe’ introduces B.S. Rearick who plied his trade in Illinois for over five decades from the late nineteenth century.
A Dorothy Shepard spectacular and fairground work by Russ Thomas. Photos: Letterform Archive and Estate of RJ Thomas respectively.
In terms of contemporary practitioners, ‘Shop Talk’ takes us into the field to learn from Greta Lindsay and her work painting for major international music festivals. We also hear how Loughlin Brady Smith’s adventures in letter carving have informed his sign painting work.
’Shop Talk’ and ‘Making the Cut: Adventures in Letter Carving’ run sequentially at the beginning of the issue.
Shelf Wobblers
Do I have an unhealthy obsession with books about sign painting and signs? Probably. Do I care? No, and neither should you. So, if you’re looking for new publications to add to your library in 2026, BLAG 08 has you covered with tomes from Australia, Brazil, Mexico, and the USA to consider.
Melbourne Ghost Signs, Doyle David Butler’s Book, and the American Sign Museum Book are among the six publications featured in BLAG 08.
Globetrotting
Most BLAG members are based in North America and Europe, but the contents of the magazine are far from restricted to these locations. One of this issue’s main features examines the changes in Hong Kong’s renowned signscape through the eyes of Henry Steiner, nearly 60 years after his 1966 essay on the subject. Luisa Cools then details her research into the characteristic signs found in Seoul’s industrial districts, while Maarten Leenknecht takes us to the world heritage site of Lamu, Kenya, to share his observations on the hand-painted lettering he found there.
Hong Kong, Kenya, and South Korea inside BLAG 08.
Art Attack
The second big feature, penned by regular contributor Emily Gosling, profiles five artists whose work is inspired by signs, and places them front and centre. (One of these is Katy V. Meehan who demonstrated her process during BLAG Meet: Inside Issue 04.)
Imogen Hawgood (left) and James Guçwa are among the artists profiled in Emily Gosling’s feature, ‘The Fine Art of Painting Signs’.
There’s also a new (and potentially recurring) section — ‘Exhibitionism’ — rounding up a host of sign/art exhibitions that took place in 2025.
Last But Not Least, The Regulars
There’s a definite French connection in ‘On the Brush’, which includes a basic glass etching guide and a traveling sign painter working up some novel grocery store signs in Canada. ‘Meet the Letterheads’ features a host of smaller events held in the movement’s golden anniversary year, while ‘Interowriting’ dives into Cursive writing through the ages.
The centre spread brings you a new alphabet — Pool Rules — with variants to play with, and the latest secret of Fileteado Porteño is how to paint the swan. There’s then your usual dose of ‘Sundries’ with the introduction of more Kitbox Krew characters and a very important take on the regular ‘Wise Words’ piece.
‘On the Brush’, Rob Cooper’s Pool Rules alphabet, and the latest instalment of ’The Secrets of Fileteado Porteño’.
Thanks
More than 60 contributors from around the world made BLAG 08 possible, and it was once again a pleasure to collaborate with so many brilliant people. Thank you all.
Nothing happens without the members, patrons, and sponsors that fund all the work that goes into the magazine. Thank you! If you’re not one already, then join today to get the latest issue, and more, delivered directly to your mail/post box.
Thanks also to the wonderful team that brings the final print magazine to fruition: Jenna Homen on sub-editing; UTILE on design; SYL, The Art of Books on print; and Ra & Olly on distribution.
Fonts in Use are Aktiv Grotesk by Dalton Maag and Utile by Sibylle Hagmann from Kontour. Photography of the magazine is by Edgar Gonzalez.
Back Issues
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BLAG Meet
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