Hi
I'm looking for examples of 'Typography as art' ie where letterform is the only or main part of a piece of art.
If you have any links or suggestions I would be happy to hear them.
Stephen R
Typophile
'Typography as art'
Kurt Schwitters
El Lissitzky
Piet Zwart
Hendrik Werkman
my favourite; Ed Ruscha
Bruce Nauman
Barbara Kruger
Jenny Holzer
In sweden we have a designer Gabor Palotai, he often uses only typography to create his design/art. However I’m not sure it is supposed to be called art or not — and btw, who is the judge of that — but it sure is "arty". He has done a few books that is quite cool.
The most popular and well known is probably "Love" by Robert Indiana.
Look for Arabic, there is an old 1990 Baseline magazine with some good examples. I had it but someone at Microsoft didn't give it back to me.
There has been a great exhbition at British Museum recently Word into Art I was so impressed that when I wento to Morocco I had bought some caligraphy in Essouaria and my wife started caligraphy doodling.
Of the arabic theme, there are some interesting typographic works in the 'Community' > 'Galeria' section here.
Nick Cooke
Oh yes, I second that Arabic is beautiful, but for me arabic is more an art of calligraphy, not typography. Two weeks ago I was to a seminar with Linotype’s Nadine Chahine who is developing the arabic fonts at Linotype. Some examples that she showed of old arabic calligraphy, it just blew my mind – so beautiful pieces of art.
How about Barbara Kruger?
christopher wool
(search google images)
hah, how one can forget this great chap
http://www.siscottdesign.com/
Drawings with Arabic ABC
Affiches lacérées:
François Dufrêne, Raymond Hains, Jacques Villeglé etc.
Pablo Picasso and George Braque
René Magritte
Ilia Zdanevich
Glenn Ligon
Fred Eerdekens
This book may be a helpful survey.
Dada.
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=dada&btnG=Google+Search&ie=UTF-8...
not sure why that link is not active, but I did an image search for Dada on google and found a lot of examples of typography art.
Thanks for that link, Satya. I've seen this guys work before (and loved it!), but didn't know who made it.
hey... azizwhat i like most in ur artwork is the" leader " ;)
gr8 work!
this is a type of arabic calligraphy art (kufi handasa)
Tom, you might enjoy this (via Typographica)
http://typeforyou.blogspot.com/2006/08/si-scott-interview.html
Not really an artist in the same terms as the others here but still.
Tim
I sure do, Tim! Thanks!
Mostafa, I love that stuff.
hhp
thanx hrant... i've got more ;)
Stephen,
There're a few gems here. I particularly like the large works work of Stefan Sagmeister.
it has to be said - a lot of stuff suggested here that isn't art.
r.k
Miles's comment reminds of something:
There was a guy on Typophile who was painting tableaus of letterforms.
In particular I remember one of a detail of a hedera. Very cool angle.
Rob, nice.
hhp
you might find this useful:
http://typophile.com/node/18574
April Greiman
ChrisL
Here's that glyph tableau painter guy:
http://typophile.com/node/15101
hhp
______________
Hiro
Who is that Hero? Shy?
Aziz, thanx alot 4 the site... interesting
Wow! Arabic Calligraphy is having a very good space in this topic. But I have to agree with Goran Soderstrom; I know a lot of good work of arabic calligaphy, especially here in Egypt we have some strong calligraphers! but most of arabic fonts - I have seen or even shared in making - are not having the quality that our calligraphy has. But Any way here what I can find regarding typography:
http://www.arabicfonts.com/logogallery.asp
Ahmad Shawkash
> most of arabic fonts ... are not having the quality that our calligraphy has.
Perhaps you agree, but: it does need a different kind of quality.
hhp
Acutally, I can't agree more.
Ahmad Shawkash
That link needs sometime to read before I write a comment there, and that will happen later. But from a fast reading there I can tell you have made some appreciated effort to solve some of the problem, Mr.Aziz. What about Shawkash's calligraphy and your capture of that small movie any way. I hope nothing wrong with it :-)
Ahmad Shawkash
Ahmad Shawkash, You mean the 2 forming One heart with a flower dancing over.
Simple yet Great! I love your Fonty Animation.
It is also appreciated you have noticed that; most of it's veiwers at that community didn't say anything about the flower. And from the short time chance of reading your messages here, allow me to describe you as someone in love with all world flowers.
Ahmad Shawkash
Maybe not art, but a building. I'm pretty sure it says something.
It's a hotel in Cairo.
Nick Cooke
That's right: Verses of the Glorious Quran in Kufi Style of Writing.
Nick Cooke, was it taken by you?
Regards with Flowers
fiona banner.....
she used type in her work which won the turner prize some yrs back.. with her large transcripts of porn.
One of my favourite pieces of 'type as art' is the video for Alex Gopher's 'The Child' video.
Watching something so intricate at low quality on a tiny screen size doesn't do it justice, it's really worth a look at in full-quality if you ever get the chance.
Someone told me that the institut du monde arabe
in Paris (architect Jean Nouvel) has also verses/words in its walls. I went there but I coudn't read anything! Anyone knows something about?
Aziz - yes it was taken by me.
Nick Cooke
Don't know what to say, or how to thank you all. Cept, you all sure do know your stuff!
Thanks all
Stephen.
>Who is that Hero? Shy?
Aziz, deleted - is part of a series I'm working on which speaks of the destruction, deconstruction and reconstruction of the written word. It may appear stupidly simple - but it ain't.
This is a great thread, nice question stephen - I see some familiar names who have/do inspire me, and some new ones too.
__________
Hiro
Maybe someone with a flickr account can gather images from those sugguested and compile a flickr place for them?
Marian Bantjes
a little avant-weird, but Jan Svankmajer's films make rather extensive use of typography in fairly unprecedented ways..
Hiroshige, do you know a Gentleman/Lady named XXX from XXX?
He/She does Destruction, Deconstruction and Reconstruction, All with just XXX?
Guess he/she is XXX years Old but Wondering y XXX is so XXX?
XXX Thanx with XXX
_________
Hiro
Hiro! that is freakin' brilliant!
ChrisL
I don't know if you classify this as art, but it's brilliant stuff.
Hiroshige, just one question:
How do you write 30 in Roman System?
Equal Thanks with Flowers
Mathias, what do you love in that precisely?
Hey thanks for the comps guys!!, for some reason it means a lot to me - must be the cabernet.
________
Hiro
I love these letterpressed posters for the helvetica movie:
One of my favorites is the Italian futurist Fortunato DePero whose work you can see, at among other places, here.
Our ampersand poster could be considered an art project. » Contains video «
No apologies for the blatant self-promotion.
Last week I saw Marian Bantjes presentation at the TDC.
Her work is not only wonderfully imaginative and artistically superb, but it just makes you feel happier, like the old Beatles music. A rare treasure and pleasure.
I say this periodically: Bantjes is the messiah of PoMo.
So unlike the hooligans of the 90s.
hhp
My work is very typographic - I hand carve linoleum alphabets and print with them on fabric dishtowels, shirts and bolts of fabric. I have an installation hanging in the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln Massachusetts:
http://www.decordova.org/decordova/exhibit/2008/2008%20Annual/ahern.htm
www.electrocaster.org
mitchelka@electrocaster.org
Very nice, Aziz. Are those yours?
If mine, I would have won at least one of these battles:
http://typophile.com/typophile_tee_contest_2008
http://typophile.com/battle27
With FLowers
Escape C4 is brilliant!
ChrisL
Just to link it to:
http://www.typophile.com/node/36248
I like the work of Catherine Zask, she makes some interesting typographic posters…
hi guys
Please this is urgent!
Does anyone know if the Kufi Ayah posted on this sheet is copy written? I mean can I use it in one of my designs?
I would highly appreciate a quick answer!
Tauba Auerbach
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