I’ve more or less finished the studio rebuild other than a smaller secondary project to add a small loft storage space that will help get a few more things out of the way. Improving the space has made it feel more organized, flow better, and just generally be more enjoyable to be in. And — it’s got me back in a mood to be making things, starting with helping a good friend with a few things for their upcoming nuptials tomorrow, and a little mini print for myself that’s ready to go.

Footnotes

O.OO No Magic in Riso: A Bilingual Risograph Tool Book, O.OO, 2019.

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Granting the frailty, and no doubt the impermanence, of modern technology as a human contrivance, the man who can keep a fire in a stove or on a hearth is not only more durable, but wiser, closer to the meaning of fire, than the man who can only work a thermostat.

Wendell Berry

Wendell Berry has become a bit of a spirit guide for me, someone whose writing always teaches me something and opens my mind to things I’ve never considered.

Although the book’s central theme is a deeply personal meditation on racism and the hurt it inflicts on all of us, this snippet from The Hidden Wound taps into something about that feels relevant not just in the sense of how we place value on one another as humans, but also in how we’ve allowed technology specifically to erode the value of learned skill.

My hope is always that common sense will prevail and most people will want to land on the right side of history as the upheaval we’re experiencing now shakes out.

Footnotes

Berry, Wendell. The Hidden Wound, Counterpoint Books, 2010. p 76.

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… The machine appeared
In the distance, singing to itself
Of money. Its song was the web
They were caught in, men and women
Together. The villages were as flies
To be sucked empty
God secreted
A tear. Enough, enough.
He commanded, but the machine
Looked at him and went on singing.

R.S. Thomas

Welsh poet R.S. Thomas frequently referred to mechanized and materialistic society as the machine, an apt metaphor that holds up even today despite Thomas passing in 2000 — his life barely glimpsing the technology we take for granted today. This particular passage is taken from a poem called Other and his 1972 collection H’m. I can imagine he’d have strong words about where we’re currently headed and those pushing us in that direction.

Footnotes

Thomas, R.S. H’m. Macmillan, 1972.

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Art & Design

• RYBitten is a fascinating tool (and accompanying visual playground) that filters RGB colors to create various painterly variants based on historical color systems.
• … The big successes at the moment are the publications that speak to a very specific reader, but that are also galvanizing the influence to bring in new readers. The Fence on the ad nauseum the death of print.
• An oldie, but still a goodie, Kindra Murphy’s collection of Milwaukee Bus Passes is outstanding. I remember being introduced to these at TypeCon a number of years ago.
• The idea of being in good hands is one I recognize in things that are well-made. Like trust, it’s something that has to be earned, and is easily lost.
• File Under Places I’d Like to Visit: IKEA's secretive prototyping lab in Sweden. I do love a good lab.
• There’s always something to be learned from those who came before if you’re open to hear them out. The Letters to a Young Curator collections from the Steve Jobs Archive probably have a little something for everyone.
• Tess Needham has made a great little zine called Human creativity in the age of AI. Download, print, and fold your own copy.
• The Print Arkive. Hide my wallet, seriously.

Type of Note

• GT Mechanik by Shiva Nallaperumal, Reto Moser, and Noël Leu, at Grilli Type is a collection of distinct styles in the form of Mono, Semi and Poly which build on a common set of DNA and that gives each a unique visual expression. Of course, it goes without saying to not miss the font’s exceptional microsite.
• Flavia Zimbardi and Caetano Calomino’s ZC Casual hit 1.0 status. Its five styles adds some distinctly Brazilian flavor to the classic speed stroke lettering style favored by sign painters all over the globe.
• Benjamin Tuttle’s Racquet merges historic European styles from the late 1800s to produce a new rounded display sans. I dig its sharp curved tails and backslanted style especially.
• Alpen Stencil from PFA-Typefaces is a low-contrast sans-serif stencil family that also happens to be reminiscent of morse code or stitching. Readability be damned.
• And then there’s Coolkit — also an almost monolinear sans-serif stencil typeface. The rounded ends of its geometric forms and distinct flat crossbars give it a more human feel than something purely mechanical.
• Cisne packs a lot into a tiny little package of near geometric forms and subtle, often dainty elegance. Its design and character feels very much of this moment.

One More Thing

Give yourself some time to dig into The Extrapolated Futures Archive because you’re going to need it. The site maps “real-world scenarios to the science fiction stories that explored them first.”

I’ve been busy the last few weeks quietly rebuilding the studio, or well maybe that should really be “reimagining” the studio. Like in many things I’m trying to find a particular focus and the place where I want to spend more time hasn’t been feeling all that enjoyable to be in, until now. It’s still rough around the edges, but it’s got a whole new energy now and it has me wanting to get back out there making things again in a way I haven’t felt in a little while. This is good — and I can’t wait to see what comes of it.

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…those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.

C.S. Lewis

I seem to be going through a period of “heavy” books at the moment. Currently, Wendell Berry’s The Hidden Wound preceded by Paul Kingsnorth’s Against the Machine, which has less to do with AI than you might think based on the title, though this nugget from C.S. Lewis wouldn’t seem out of place in current conversations about the extractive effects technologies like AI have on us.

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The more machines there are to replace men, the more men there will be in society who are nothing but machines.

Louis De Bonald

I’m currently reading Against the Machine by Paul Kingsnorth which, despite being only 60-odd pages in, is a more personal book than I would have guessed and proving to be interesting, and not unrelated to my continued research for the follow-up to Context Window that will hopefully pick up steam over the next few weeks.

This quote from French philosopher and counter-revolutionary, Louis Gabriel Ambroise, Vicomte de Bonald (d. 1840) opens the book and definitely sets a tone for what follows.

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Although I didn’t pay much attention to the others, this is now the third or fourth large oak in the neighborhood park to give out during a recent storm. I don’t know why consciously why this one grabbed my attention, but maybe it simply feels representative of that sinking feeling that’s been lingering about how things are going in this country, broadly in the industry I’m a part of — and how I think things are going to continue feeling for a while.

The dog and I did enjoy the rest of our walk, so that’s something.

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A few weeks back my to-read pile was in need of replenishment. This typically means a visit to our local library book sale and potentially selecting a few books from my wishlist. Unexpectedly, when those arrived a few days later there was an extra package. The box was properly addressed to me, but upon opening I discovered it contained a book Theo of Golden which I did not order, nor had I even heard of at the time — and no note, no packing slip, no inscription, nothing.

I set the book aside thinking maybe I’d find out where it came from.

It was only in the last week when I finally caught up to it in the pile and began reading. I read the book description, but still wasn’t sure what to expect.

It was only as I made my way through its pages that the book’s serendipitous arrival was fitting entirely with the story held within its pages — a charming one of kindness, generosity, and wonder. A story where the bestowal of gifts is its own reward and a reminder of how the simplest gestures are reciprocal vehicles of meaning.

I still have about 40 pages to go but I’m grateful that this book appeared when and how it did. I only wish I knew who to thank for it.

I’ve heard mixed things about one particular aspect of the end of the book, but one the whole, I’ve very much enjoyed it and would recommend it if you need something to make you feel a little better about humanity in these difficult times.

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Art & Design

• Trees don’t pay off tomorrow. They pay off in a decade. They compound quietly, making everything around them better, shade, value, beauty, longevity. Dave Snyder on restraint and the compound interest of design.
• …the mark of a craftsperson: a sense of obligation to better the lives of those around them by making things for them. Sharif captures the sentiment beautifully for how I try to think about both my day job or the work of my personal creative practice.
• Chance Operations is the (new?) name of producer and filmmaker Gary Hustwit’s production company. He’s also introduced a new series of design-focused interviews called Seven Questions with the likes of Michael Alan Ross, Brian Eno, Ben Suga and more — including himself.
• Ritual Technology, a new book from photographer Timothy Saccenti and designed by the team at Build looks gorgeous. That slipcase cover is a real marvel of material wizardry.
• Robin Sloan’s new Penumbra Print Shop is open with a fun (and limited) Magic Postcard product. I’ve already ordered a set to better understand the technology side of what he’s built — and because I love sending postcards.
• Slanted 47: Digital Tools is going on my wishlist.

Type of Note

• Exat unquestionably draws inspiration from Helvetica through its modern balance of form and function while harmonizing character shapes, weights, and widths to create a robust — and ultimately useful type family for nearly any occasion.
• Atlantic, a new and distinctly American-flavored Scotch Roman family from MCKL Type takes inspiration from the original nameplate from issues of The Atlantic magazine but expands into a family of three widths and seven weights with matching italics.
• Martin Majoor’s Comma Serif family is the latest in a larger super family which includes closely connected Base and Sans styles. What stands out is its uniwidth design which allows switching weights without disturbing text flow, highly valuable in longford editorial settings.
• Cast Type’s 8 (yes, that’s the name) playfully hints at the eccentricities of mid-century lettering. It’s heavy, squishy, and includes a small collection of fun ornaments.

One More Thing

The value of print is actually not about paper. It’s about the set of demands and offerings that that paper has. Privacy, stability, reliability, sovereignty. Robin Sloan (yes, him again) and others on the place of print and physical things in a world where digital convenience rules. Print is forever.

It’s a been a bit of an up-and-down kind of week for me but I’ve been focused on making the most of it — in the sense of focusing my energy on what feels most important at the time, which mostly meant time offline. I’m focused a lot on my health right now and so prioritizing that above all else (I’m fine), but still finding time to exercise my mind and hands on little projects that are leading towards hopefully a greater result — and trying to wrangle travel plans and a few days of necessary rest.

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It’s been a while since I’ve added a new color swatches book/project to my collection and Daniel Mellis’ Risograph Barycentric Color Atlas is a doozy as it visually explores color mixing across twenty-four sets of 3-color combinations comprised of 13 ink colors on the Risograph.

This approach really does a good job of showing off how Riso inks mix, and Daniel’s unusual book format also demonstrates printing on larger sheets than are commonly used with the Riso.

I also discovered he’s designed and produces a pretty cool bookbinding signature punch tool.

I wasn’t familiar with barycentric coordinates, and luckily Daniel offers a very simple explanation on the project page for the book: …taking one unit of mass and distributing it on the corners of the triangle. The point on which the triangle will balance is the center of mass, or the barycenter.

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