Research Point: Vernacular typography (Graphic Design 1: page 90)
Vernacular typography can be very well crafted but it can also be crudely created signs done in a hurry. Either way it is using typography and lettering to create visual communications Take a look around you and identify some vernacular typography that you find interesting. Document the results.
Vernacular typography
I happened to be in Kentish Town for a meeting and it provided a perfect opportunity for looking at vernacular typography. In an age where digital reproduction is so easily available I confess I hadn’t expected to see many handwritten signs, but once I’d spotted one they seemed to be everywhere. I particularly liked the Laurent Perrier one because its message is so clear.
I also like Strollers mainly because it made me laugh. This is a coffee shop for all! But the coloured type looks a little faded, the positioning of ‘retired people’ is slightly odd, and the lack of opening times seems to be a bit of an omission.
