Monotype and Alan Kitching Join Forces to Spotlight Five Legendary Poster Designers at the London Design Festival 2014
London, UK (PRWEB) August 27, 2014 -- Monotype and renowned typographer, graphic designer and letterpress printmaker, Alan Kitching, are collaborating on a series of events that celebrate design at the London Design Festival 2014, with a focus on the work and legacy of five legendary poster designers of the last century, and Kitching’s own craft.
“Alan Kitching and Monotype: Celebrating the centenary of five pioneers of the poster” opens Sept. 13, 2014, as part of the London College of Communication’s 160 Exhibition, a series of design retrospectives for the London Design Festival. The five pioneers exhibit marks the 100 anniversary of the birth of Tom Eckersley, Abram Games, FHK Henrion, Josef Müller-Brockmann and Paul Rand, all of whom created iconic and memorable posters and are regarded as fathers of modern graphic design.
Kitching has created a unique series of prints that pay tribute to these designers, which will be shown alongside posters by each of the five. In addition, the exhibition includes a selection of original typeface drawings from the Monotype archive, as well as sketches and wood type from Kitching’s workshop, and other material from the five designers’ estates.
Accompanying the exhibition, the lives and legacies of the five designers will be explored in the talk, “Five lives in posters,” at the LCC on Sept. 18, 2014. The discussion, chaired by Eye Magazine’s John L Walters, will feature Kitching and guest speakers Naomi Games (daughter of Abram Games), Tony Brook of Spin, award-winning graphic designer and writer Jessica Helfand, screen printer Dan Mather, and graphic designer and publisher Lars Müller. Following the talk, visitors are invited to attend a private view of the exhibition.
Monotype will also premiere the short film, “Alan Kitching and Monotype,” at the Victoria and Albert Museum on Sept. 13, 2014, the opening day of the London Design Festival. The film documents the making of Kitching’s collection and celebrates his work, featuring his studio and Kitching in conversation with Monotype Creative Director James Fooks-Bale, explaining how the design process has changed over the years, as well as Kitching’s own approach. Following its debut, the film will run as part of the “Alan Kitching and Monotype: Celebrating the centenary of five pioneers of the poster” exhibition at the LCC.
Kitching said, “It has been a great privilege to collaborate with Monotype to celebrate these five giants of graphic design.”
Monotype’s Fooks-Bale said, “We’re extremely lucky to have living legend Alan Kitching partnering with us to celebrate five fathers of graphic design, all born in 1914. This will bring more attention to the discipline of graphic design and typography, as well as the legacy these legends have given us and future generations.”
Further information and tickets are available at monotype.com/kitching.
About Monotype
Monotype is a leading global provider of typefaces, technology and expertise that enable the best user experience and ensure brand integrity. Headquartered in Woburn, Mass., Monotype provides customers worldwide with typeface solutions for a broad range of creative applications and consumer devices. The company’s libraries and e-commerce sites are home to many of the most widely used typefaces – including the Helvetica®, Frutiger® and Univers® families – as well as the next generation of type designs. Further information is available at http://www.monotype.com. Follow Monotype on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Monotype’s Type Case blog.
About Alan Kitching
Born in England, Alan Kitching is one of the world's foremost practitioners of letterpress typographic design and printmaking. Early in his career, he was an apprentice compositor before cofounding the experimental printing workshop with Anthony Froshaug at Watford College of Technology School of Art in 1964. In 1973, Kitching began his own design practice in London. In 1977 he partnered with Derek Birdsall at Omnific and started letterpress printing there in 1985. He then went on to establish The Typography Workshop in Clerkenwell and began teaching through letterpress at the Royal College of Art (1991–2006). Kitching continues to exhibit and lecture across the globe and is renowned for his use of wood and metal letterforms.
Monotype, Helvetica and Frutiger are trademarks of Monotype Imaging Inc. registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be registered in certain jurisdictions. Univers is a trademark of Monotype GmbH registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be registered in certain jurisdictions. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ©2014 Monotype Imaging Holdings Inc. All rights reserved.
Vikki Quick, Monotype, http://www.monotype.com, +1 (781) 970-6115, [email protected]
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