[Emily Potts] Last week we were inspired by three amazing artists: Henning Wagenbreth, Sophie Dutertre and Placid. In keeping with the French artist theme, I’m starting off this week’s Creative Chain with an illustrator I deeply admire and respect.
[Kim Rogala] As the Mohawk Show 12 entry deadline approaches (May 31st, so hurry and enter!) we wanted to direct your attention to the Show’s materials that were created by the team at Tether. We asked Stanley Hainsworth, founder and chief creative officer of Tether, to tell us a little about his thoughts behind the designs.
[Alyson Kuhn] Michael Boyd, designer of the PLANEfurniture line, collects modernist furniture, art, architecture and design books, and ephemera. Last year, he decided to create a line of modernist-inspired furniture that “makes you think, holds your body, eases your mind, and sits well within your budget.” That’s a quote from the jacket flap of PLANEfurniture: types + prototypes, designed by Mick Hodgson of Ph.D, A Design Office. I recently sat in some of the furniture and can confirm that it is quite user-friendly.
This summer the Linotype machine, which revolutionized printing by automating typesetting, celebrated its 125th anniversary. In its all-but-forgotten glory — at the time Thomas Edison described the Linotype as “the eighth wonder of the world” — it’s the subject of a new documentary film by Doug Wilson, letterpress printer, designer and typography enthusiast … and the whole project is being funded at Kickstarter.
Prior to the invention of the Linotype machine in 1886 by Ottmar Merganthaler in Germany, type was set by hand, one letter at a time. The Linotype revolutionized typesetting through its ability to set a complete line of type. In the process, says Wilson, who is directing and producing the film, it also revolutionized printing and mass communication. “The Linotype was the Twitter and desktop publishing of the 1880s,” he says. “It sped up the delivery of the news from weekly to daily, which had a huge impact on communication. To me, it had an effect on society like the automobile or the telephone, but because it wasn’t a consumer product, few people today are aware of its importance.”
The machine was one of the most complex mechanical devices ever created. “It’s a fascinating story that hasn’t been told,” Wilson explains. While almost all Linotype machines have by now either been scrapped or lie rusting in scrap heaps, some are still in use, he says. “And people are doing very interesting things with these machines even today.”
Production of the film was successfully funded on Kickstarter beginning last November. Slated for completion at the end of this year, the documentary is now in post-production, and in its second Kickstarter phase. Wilson reports that his team, which includes Brandon Goodwin (director of photography) and Jess Hugel (audio engineer) is two-thirds of the way toward the post-production funding goal with a couple of weeks left.
We’ll be featuring Linotype: The Film later this year. For now, check out interview excerpts from the film with Allan Haley, Matthew Carter and more:
Learn more about Doug Wilson and his work at his website, OnPaperWings.com. Our thanks for Danny J. Gibson for alerting us to this news. [TB]
08.23.11
Posted by Allan Haley on 08.23.11 at 2:04 pm
This should prove to be a lively and exceptionally well-documented film – a must for any typophile. In fact, a must for anyone who enjoys a good story, well told.
This should prove to be a lively and exceptionally well-documented film – a must for any typophile. In fact, a must for anyone who enjoys a good story, well told.