Thanks to all the team that worked on the TypoCircle 40th Anniversary and especially Jim Sutherland (Sutherl&) and NB Studio, the book produced won pencils from D&AD. Very exciting to be recognised in this way although my main contribution was the research and some writing.

Private View of the 40th Anniversary exhibition

It was a really good night! So many people came from Industry as well as members of the TypoCircle.

Alan and John as highest ranking officers spoke the TypoCircle thanks to all those involved over the years. The list of past speakers alone on the wall took some reading.

 We also had some of the Founders of the Circle and many of the past Chairmen present. The work looked amazing in the frames and cabinets thanks to GF Smith; and Monotype for the white cabinets. It was so interesting to see a small range of ephemera that has been produced across the years. More people came in during the Exhibition to say they had work too, so that is something I will be following up.

Olaf Linberg, Robbie Sparks, and Steve Leggate were there at the beginning!

Above: Rian Hughes (speaker), Ian Chilvers (past committee member) and Dom Lippa (past Chairman and designer / sponsor of Circular).

Left: Rob Mannx from GF Smith paper and Justin Hobson from Fenner paper.

TypoCircle 40th Anniversary Exhibition

This week has been a very busy one! I have worked for the TypoCircle (we are all volunteers) since 2002 and been Treasurer since 2007. 

It has been 40 years since a group of Typographers decided to create a social society to start to readdress an imbalance where Art Directors and Copy Writers got awards and Typographers were forgotten. Two years later the 'Type Directors Club', London officially came into being and changed to the Typographic Circle in the 1980s.

This month we have been celabrating the work that so many people have done over those years from initially getting it started with Maggie Lewis, known as the Queen of Typography being the driving force at that time; to the work we do today. We are all volunteers and are supported by a huge range of companies in various way, and of course the members. Membership fees are what pay for the events and publications we do.

My summer has been focussed on the research of our history, going through memos, minutes, publications, people's memories, and we have used it in a limited edition book and exhibition.

 

Working with Paper

I had the opportunity for a small group of 2nd & 3rd year students at UCA Epsom to work with GF Smith curating their Heritage Exhibition in October 2015. Students designed a 'Pop up' launch event with opportunities for people to print and play to introduce the Exhibition which ran for a month.

I have worked with Veronica Heaven at The Heaven Company on the Brief Cases competition for many years now. In March 2016 I was lucky enough to join the student competition winners from UCA Epsom and Norwich University of the Arts; with Brian Webb (one of the Judges) to visit Iggesund in Sweden for three days. The UK was experiencing the start of Spring but there was still snow in North Seweden.

It was the most marvelous experience and we were treated like royalty with the care and attenton lavished on us all by Staffan Sjoberg and his colleagues at Iggesund Invercote.

We watched the managed felling of trees after seeing all the permission documentation that is submitted before any work is carried out.
 
We visited a frozen lake to see the water source and how the company takes care of their environment, and their nursery where trees are grown to replace the ones cut.

And finally had a tour of the factory to see the entire process where the high quality paperboard is made and the lengths the company goes to to ensure their care of the environment.

It was a fantastic experience!

And Baseline gave me the opportunity to write a report about it on their blog.

Keeping up to date!

I have not been very good at keeping my own blog up to date while I do my day job of Senior Lecturer at UCA (University of the Creative Arts) Epsom, and Voluntary work with the TypoCircle. I now plan to 'catch up' and give an idea of what I have been doing.
Follow me on Twitter @TheodosiouSal as well!

Saturday included a visit to the Turner Contemporary to see Chris Alexander's work (my old tutor from the Foundation Course);

https://www.turnercontemporary.org/exhibitions/christopher-alexander

 

…and the Grayson Perry Exhibition - which was excellent!
One of my favorite pieces was this: "We are what we buy". I also enjoyed the way he uses type and image together in the mediums he works in. Well worth a visit if you are in the area.

https://www.turnercontemporary.org/exhibitions/grayson-perry