Cummings’ Escapements, from Rees’s Clocks Watches and Chronometers 1819-20). A most excellent weathervane idea…
Oh sweet jesus. For all you typesetting nerds out there (and I know you’re out there) 1 of 2. From Rees’s Clocks Watches and Chronometers 1819-20).
For all you typesetting nerds out there (and I know you’re out there) 2 of 2. From Rees’s Clocks Watches and Chronometers 1819-20).
3 interiors and one detail (of the far right). This really is a beautiful illustration, buried in the back of some book on clocks I found, Rees’s Clocks Watches and Chronometers 1819-20).
“Old AEG machine factory, Brunnenstrasse” 1899, Peter Behrens architect. From Industriekulture; Peter Behrens and the AEG 1907-1914.
These are small cards, maybe 9x14” and were displayed on easels or countertops (mercantile showcases) or in cases with theater notices. These were rapidly produced, best used for sales or limited time events, and are the precursor to today’s Point of Purchase displays. The show card is always practical - an ad, really.
Harold C. Martin is the author of 1,000 Practical Show Card Layouts and Color Sketches and was editor of Signs of the Times. He was a sign painter and found his way to layout and show cards and produced his Layouts and Sketches book, released in 1928. The style at the time leaned toward “pictorial, elaborate creations with scrolls or fancy work, which take one like myself, a mere letter, too much valuable time to reproduce”. (from his Introduction)
Time is money in that business, and he created “a series of layouts so practical that the man at the bench, particularly the novice, could prop them up in front of him and use them constantly in his daily work”.
While his goal for the book was “Layout” (as opposed to “Lettering”), the lettering is quite good. He is very clear that simplicity is the goal, not “gymnastic arrangements”.
I’m a fan of his work so I’ve been scanning details from the (very very small) samples in the book and posting them in hopes that his dollar sign or his apostrophes or his lower-case g’s (ridiculously awesome) will be noticed by all you letterers out there and serve as inspiration for your own projects. His attention to detail and variety is worth a closer look.
In his words,
“My main purpose in these card examples, many of them novel and out-of-the-ordinary, is to start a train of thought in your mind and thus stimulate your originality.
Stored away in your mind may be ideas that somebody is willing to pay you well for. Get them out. Train your mind to perceive the use and possibilities of various ideas you see, how they can be used in card work.
To him who seeks, there is a wealth of material that can be assimilated for everyday use…. What one sees on a page today can be turned into money tomorrow…. What [the author] has written has been written in all sincerity with a desire to help fellow-craftsmen.”
And, to get a sense of his personality,
“It is presumed that the reader of this volume can make at least a reasonably fair letter, for that is the first requisite; that he is acquainted with the implement called the T-Square, and has advanced enough to erase pencil lines without being told.”
The book is great. Find a copy somewhere, or start looking for more samples of the work. Personally I’m focusing on small design details hidden within his book (and my book collection) in an attempt at building a useful Tumblr page. To see his larger picture, get the book. You won’t be disappointed.
OK, just some beautiful ones (1 of 4). This are from H.C. Martin, from his 1,000 Practical Show Card Layouts and Color Sketches, 1928.
OK, just some beautiful strange ones (2 of 4). This are from H.C. Martin, from his 1,000 Practical Show Card Layouts and Color Sketches, 1928.
OK, just some beautiful ones (3 of 4). This are from H.C. Martin, from his 1,000 Practical Show Card Layouts and Color Sketches, 1928.
