Letter forms from the typeface Cassius by Mathieu Réguer

I really should have gone to Paris this weekend. I didn’t have anything terribly exciting to do here in London, two of my elder sisters were there for the weekend. I don’t know why I didn’t realize all of this before Sunday evening. Had I been there, I’m sure I would have tried to drag them to Ladurée, try to talk them into taking a boat ride on the Seine, or maybe I could finally make it to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I blame them, in part, for not getting me their itinerary sooner, let this be a lesson to all you Hunts!
However, had I been in Paris this weekend, I can tell you that I would most likely have been taking pictures of lettering more than of architecture. On my previous two trips to the center of the cultural universe, I was struck by the occurrence of what seemed to me to be a very French treatment of the majuscule R.

Cover from Portfolio of Ornamental Penmanship by A.N. Palmer Co.

Yesterday’s blog post from The Ministry of Type focuses on a singular specimen of lettering ephemera from the last century: a digitized version of W.E. Dennis’ Studies in Pen Art is truly a gem, but once you get hooked on this stuff you will want more and more (at least that is what happens to me). These materials are wonderful ephemera and excellent fodder for inspiration for those who love letters. The publication linked to by the Ministry is just one of several publications from the same period during the last century when business schools taught penmanship as a main staple of their curriculums.

A whole slew of publications dedicated to surface in America as early as the 1860s and were popular into the 1910s and beyond. Of course some of these manuals are better crafted than others. Some showcase impressive skills at ornamental lettering, while others more simply demonstrate how to write with a clear and legible hand. Some of of these are (again, at least for me) objects of desire and others are simply charming objects that may fill one with nostalgia.
One could spend years on end trying to rummage around and track down all of these books, but again we are saved some of the effort thanks to the world wide web. The International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting (IAMPETH) has put together a short listing of some of the most important manuals and has made them available digitally as .pdf files or as .jpeg images.
One day I’ll actually sit down with one or two of these books and a loaded pen and just may try practicing by writing some of you letters in an elegant hand, just don’t hold your breath until then.

Sassy, originally uploaded by pauldhunt.
After three trips to Las Vegas in the last six months, I finally got to make it to the Neon Museum’s Boneyard. I had tried to go twice previously but the key to getting in is to book a tour as far in advance as possible. The tour was an amazing experience. The organization behind it has the goal of preserving as much of the old Vegas signage as possible and making it accessible to the public. I believe these are very worthy goals, so I was glad to make the requested donation to go on the tour.

There are several impressive aspects of these old neon signs: the wonderful lettering styles, the engineering of some pieces, but perhaps the most impressive aspect is the scale of many of these old instalations.

More photos at flickr.

The 1 & only again…, originally uploaded by pauldhunt.

… well, it’s not quite a word, but someday it’ll be able to make any word! (In the Latin Script, that is) So what is this drawing of? It’s my very feeble sketching abilities trying to depict what my typeface project will look like. This is definitely not a tight sketch. However, this is the only sketch i made before I embarked upon the process of digitization. I have filled several small book pages with even feebler attempts at calligraphy so as to have a point of reference for what I hope will be a nice, pen-informed typeface for Sanskrit research. I’m bound to have my hands full with the brief I’ve cut out for myself. Wish me luck!