Since the wedding, it seems I can't get enough of anything artistic...whether it's print, photography, even dance (I was a dance major for my undergrad). Maybe it's because I know hardly anything about it, or maybe it's from studying a bit of calligraphy to get ready for the wedding, but I've been somewhat infatuated with graphic design for the past couple weeks...letterforms and typography in particular. Even for my wedding, using a font I loved was important to me, but now that I have a lot more free time, I've been trying to learn more about type and checking into different artists that catch my eye.
This brings me to where I was tonight. While I can't remember where I first heard about her (I do know it was somewhere in the 100+ wedding blogs I follow daily...most likely from the always-inspirational Nole at Oh So Beautiful Paper...), Jessica Hische had a way of popping up several times in my wedding planning. I think the biggest influence was from her "Hendrix" wedding invitations on Bella Figura:
I also remember seeing the work she did for Tiffany & Co.:
{ via JessicaHische.com }
The exhibition I went to see tonight at Art in the Age in Philadelphia though was of her Daily Drop Cap project:
"The Daily Drop Cap is an ongoing project by typographer and illustrator Jessica Hische. Each day (or at least each WORK day), a new hand-crafted decorative initial cap will be posted for your enjoyment and for the beautification of blog posts everywhere." { from DailyDropCap.com }
{ via Jessica Hische }
I went down to Philly right after work and was looking forward to seeing some of her prints in person. I felt a little out of my element and imagined that everyone else in there were all graphic designers/art students so I just casually checked everything out in the super-cool place while making my way to the back to see all the prints. I ended up talking to Daniel, the guy who is actually the curator for Art in the Age for a little bit! I explained my love of and appreciation for but lack of knowledge about type and design. He was super-nice as we discussed Jessica's work and even offered to take a picture of me in front of the prints with my iPhone:
He definitely made me feel more comfortable. I was able to meet Jessica and chat with her for a little while too. She was so friendly and encouraged me to keep feeding my love of type. I picked her brain about letterpress, how calligraphy can help with understanding letterforms, and how I should expand my vocabulary of letterform variations (...did I just geek out there for a minute?). Before leaving, I did end up purchasing the F unmounted print (although I had asked the girl working the desk if they had her ampersand print which is my absolute FAVORITE of the letterpressed ones, to which I received the response..."am...amp...huh?" Sigh. Oh well, maybe once I can fit another print in the budget?) and a little present for Mr. that was totally unrelated to Jessica's prints.
While her letters are "not for use in personal logos and branding", I can't help but be inspired by how one letter can completely change the feel of a document. Anyone else feel me here? So even though I'm already a huge fan of invitations that incorporate a unique font overall...
{ via RIFLE }
{ via Oh So Beautiful Paper }
...I'd be interested to see how the concept of a Daily Drop Cap could be incorporated into an invitation suite, aside from the traditional monogram.
First thing that comes to mind is the M on the reply card...the one where you're supposed to fill in your name after?
{ via Minted ... I don't think it'd look right with this type of RSVP but just so you know what "M" I'm talking about... }
Anyone else have any ideas? I would LOVE to receive an invitation that uses type creatively and it would certainly make me even more excited for the event! ...Is that bad?
It was awesome to be able to take the trip down to Art in the Age and meet Jessica. I am even more a fan of her work now than I was before! I will certainly have to get her ampersand print in the future too :)
Has anyone else developed a new, unexpected interest while wedding planning?
Yes, totally! I experienced so much of the stuff you wrote about here. I used Jessica Hische's Buttermilk font in my invitations, and I learned to letterpress and made them myself. Now I read all these typography blogs and am really interested in the creative aspects of letterpress and fonts and graphic design, though I don't have much prior experience. I'm trying to figure out what to do with this newfound interest, either as a hobby or incorporating it into a new career direction...
ReplyDeletei'm also super jealous you got to go to that exhibit in philly! I have my eye on some of those drop cap prints as well, and it would have been really cool to talk to Jessica as well. (I can't believe she's my age and doing such awesome things!)
great post -- thanks for sharing! you are definitely not alone :)
Wow, that's so incredible that you got to speak with the curator and artist! What a special treat. I'm so glad they were nice and not snobby, because as someone who once pursued a career in museums, I came across a lot of snobs in my internships!
ReplyDeleteSomething that I always loved doing to feed my creativity was taking some book arts classes on the side, and I'm sure there are a lot of design resources in Philadelphia for you! I hope you keep up the curiosity, it's great fun. :)
Kathleen - Yeah, I totally hear you...I have looked into some graphic design courses at our community college so I'm planning on following up with that in the winter/spring. And um, what? You learned how to letterpress?? Please share.
ReplyDeleteMo - Haha, yeah...I walked in and felt like a TOTAL outsider. The curator was a really really nice guy though and I'm very lucky to have met Jessica.
I basically just googled letterpress classes in my city and luckily one turned up! It was at a community studio (atlanta printmakers studio) and was super awesome, and not terribly expensive. I'm hoping to take their intermediate/next level class this fall.
ReplyDeletemeanwhile, i'm also looking at graphic design classes/certificate programs. we'll see where all this leads us! hopefully both you and I will find good ways to make this stuff a part of our work/hobbies. :)