Types they are a-changin'

TYPO Berlin Body Setting

Mrs Eaves in Berlin

Hallo! TYPO Berlin begins this Thursday with  my presentation on Saturday (see full program here)... but if you're in Berlin tomorrow look out for a different  kind of body text setting around town :-).

Ampersand Castle

The ampersand is usually the object of experimentation and creativity in type design. More broadly it often become a source of excitement to designers and readers alike, with "sweeping curves, flirtatious finishes and bold statements" as Huw Wilkins at Smashing Magazine describes in "Ampersands with Attitude". There's a blog dedicated solely to the ampersand, House Industries' cast-iron ampersand and Stephen Banham's book which shares the name and of course the neat article posted last year by Jonathan Hoefler with a concise history of the symbol and stories behind some of the finest.

But if it's not cast in metal, flowing from the nib of a pen or from a collection of pixels, how else might an ampersand take form? On the plane of the beach and constructed from sand, the ampersand castle could fulfil all your outdoor-lifesize-conjunction needs. The first prototype is reminiscent of Jason Walcott's Cabernet with bulbous ball terminals which take on a new form from the material of their creation. Unfortunately the first trial was unsuccessful, with the thinner strokes constructed with sand unable to hold their shape when the mould was removed.

However, if you're in Sydney for Summer 09/10 look out on the Eastern beaches as I will hopefully have mastered the creation of my ampersand mould (or collection of moulds) and will be creating numerous ampersand castles in the early hours of the morning before the beaches get packed with sun seekers!

Adriana