I recently submitted two chapters to a book being published in the UK on typeface selection and usage. A fulfilling task, to articulate the decisions we often make intuitively.
The end of the book includes a reference section on historically relevant typefaces and I realized my appreciation of grunge type is seriously lacking. Time for a refresher!
A Companion to the History of the Book*, one of the most valuable books I've read, now on my wish list, addresses the future of the book without emotion or fear - I appreciate that. Will it die? According to Angus Phillips, probably not. Why? The tangible book is worth much more than the comfort people claim to enjoy from holding it in hand: “…the sale of a physical item yields a return against a predictable cost (pg. 556)” and while digital advancements are exciting, their “profitability is more difficult to control” as are copyright infringements (ibid). The book as a printed object is not only around for a while. It's relied upon.
*Eliot, Simon, Jonathan Rose, ed. A Companion to the History of the Book. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007.
“By a typographer, I do not mean a printer…but by a typographer, I mean such as one, who by his own judgement, from solid reasoning within himself, can either perform, or direct others to perform from the beginning to the end all the handy-works and physical operations relating to typographie.”
- Moxon, Mechanick exercises
- never been more sad to leave a city
We have all seen pictures of the glorious interior spaces of Hagia Sophia. I need not post another. But I will highlight the oldest architectural feature of the cathedral-turned-museum. It was new to me and it has stayed with me as one of the memorable images of my visit.
The Nice Door dates back to 2C BCE. It was once in a pagan temple and brought to the cathedral by Empire Theophilos in 838. In the bronze one reads two things: "God and Christ Help Us", and the year 838 (monogram).
- The Chora
- Topkapi Palace
- from our patio
Cappadocia and its otherworldly landscape - it's not right we were here for only two days. It is certainly the most ancient-feeling place I have been.
No photos permitted inside the Churches of Göreme! Tsk, tsk. But the Mister couldn't help himself. These red ochre frescoes of the Church of St. Barbara stand out for their almost primitive simplicity and echo the church's exterior. The rest of the churches overwhelm - the spaces brim with vibrantly coloured, highly detailed imagery and beg to be reflected upon. Sadly, one must mentally capture as much as possible while herded through - it's a very popular tourist destination. Our stay was brief so we bought a book to tell us what we saw after the fact.
- rare shade