"She’s miffed, to say the least, and wonders why we would bother"
December 14, 2024 8:03 AM Subscribe
Pam Mason at the Barbican Launderette puts up handwritten notices, which are appreciated by the graphic designer David McKendrick. The Instagram account set up by David for Pam. 2019 article from It's Nice That.
Yeah her “font” shouldn’t work in the way it brings warmth, but the content of the signs does so much. It’s so distinctly human, alive, and kind, you can’t help but like it!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:29 AM on December 14 [1 favorite]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:29 AM on December 14 [1 favorite]
I probably would have thoughts about the article but they are all washed far out to sea by the tsunami of upset I have in regards to the font used in the headline, with its random italics. It certainly makes me think about typography and typographers, and the thoughts, my friends, are dark ones.
posted by phooky at 8:41 AM on December 14 [12 favorites]
posted by phooky at 8:41 AM on December 14 [12 favorites]
“In many ways,” he says, “she’s proved that no matter how hard we try to recreate her typeface, we can’t achieve the originality and beauty of her signs.”
posted by HearHere at 9:32 AM on December 14 [3 favorites]
posted by HearHere at 9:32 AM on December 14 [3 favorites]
Metafilter: the thoughts, my friends, are dark ones.
posted by Reverend John at 9:51 AM on December 14 [3 favorites]
posted by Reverend John at 9:51 AM on December 14 [3 favorites]
Well now I'm a little bit in love with Pam.
Her “W”s are particularly unique, drawn with just the tiniest of apexes in the middle, where the two slanted strokes meet. “If I did those big,” Pam explains, “it just wouldn’t look right.”
Something about this quote reminds me of my grandmother. I don't think she would've called herself artistic, but all of her handiwork was very precise, and going through her things after her death, there was just so much creative material - crochet, sewing, hand-tinted photographs, hand-painted models. I didn't see it when I was a child, but she clearly had a drive to create and high standards for her work.
posted by EvaDestruction at 11:01 AM on December 14 [2 favorites]
Her “W”s are particularly unique, drawn with just the tiniest of apexes in the middle, where the two slanted strokes meet. “If I did those big,” Pam explains, “it just wouldn’t look right.”
Something about this quote reminds me of my grandmother. I don't think she would've called herself artistic, but all of her handiwork was very precise, and going through her things after her death, there was just so much creative material - crochet, sewing, hand-tinted photographs, hand-painted models. I didn't see it when I was a child, but she clearly had a drive to create and high standards for her work.
posted by EvaDestruction at 11:01 AM on December 14 [2 favorites]
First time I've visited this site, so that GDPR cookie acceptance thing popped up.
33 necessary cookies, my foot.
posted by knoxg at 8:47 PM on December 14 [3 favorites]
33 necessary cookies, my foot.
posted by knoxg at 8:47 PM on December 14 [3 favorites]
What a lovely article. I hope Pam's launderette can stay open for a long time to come!
posted by Ursula Hitler at 9:56 PM on December 14
posted by Ursula Hitler at 9:56 PM on December 14
I was a typographer for two decades. My job was running a high-end phototypesetting system called the Quadex for a small weekly newspaper. It was beautiful and powerful and took serious skill to operate. My head was full of information on kerning and dropcaps, ascenders and descenders, baselines and spacebanding. Picas and points were my measurements. I loved my job.
Literally overnight it was all replaced by desktop publishing and my years of experience abruptly meant nothing. Worse, I was surrounded by hideous abominations… German blackletter and ugly script fonts being used in all caps, weird combinations of headline and text, and gaping holes where letters were once neatly kerned. It has been torture.
Pam cares about her lettering, and takes pains to observe certain classic rules, making her signs a delight. They are clear and direct with aesthetic consistency and I can see why David enjoys them. The fact that he cares at all is a wonderful thing. There are a lot of Pams out there who give a damn but most aren’t appreciated. As a lover of letters, I raise a glass to them both.
posted by kinnakeet at 4:26 AM on December 15 [6 favorites]
Literally overnight it was all replaced by desktop publishing and my years of experience abruptly meant nothing. Worse, I was surrounded by hideous abominations… German blackletter and ugly script fonts being used in all caps, weird combinations of headline and text, and gaping holes where letters were once neatly kerned. It has been torture.
Pam cares about her lettering, and takes pains to observe certain classic rules, making her signs a delight. They are clear and direct with aesthetic consistency and I can see why David enjoys them. The fact that he cares at all is a wonderful thing. There are a lot of Pams out there who give a damn but most aren’t appreciated. As a lover of letters, I raise a glass to them both.
posted by kinnakeet at 4:26 AM on December 15 [6 favorites]
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posted by paduasoy at 8:06 AM on December 14 [1 favorite]