If it's February, it must be Gertrude and Alice [by Stacey Harwood]

 

 

For the past several years, I've been buying the Studio Hinrichs 365 Typography Calendar from Ken Night Design. The supersize version is worth the price because when it's mounted on the inside of the front door I can read it from just about anywhere in the living and dining room.  Plus, it's attractive.  Each edition features 12 unique typefaces - one for each month; many are not commercially available - with a brief explanation of why the font is distinctive and a biography of each type's designer.  

I just removed January to expose February (above) and am disappointed that February is a short month because I'm wild about designer/artist Ward Schumaker's contribution to 2012.  He came up with "Gertrude-and-Alice"  while working on illustrations for “Paris France,” his book on Gertrude Stein.  In keeping with his artistic style, he combined brushed letters and hand-cut paper characters. Schumaker says that he imagined that the heavy brush strokes represented the large and ebullient Gertrude Stein, while the delicate hand-cut paper pieces represented the thin and prickly Alice B. Toklas.

A quick Google search took me to Schumaker's own blog and website, where one can see more of his fine work. Some of it may look familiar; Schumaker's illustrations have appeared in many popular magazines and newspapers.  

Here's an image of Gertrude Stein from "Paris France":

 

And here on his blog you'll find another series inspired by Stein.  I want to get my hands on a copy of his Two Kitchens in Provence by M.F.K Fisher.  Beautiful!

In a recent post, Schumaker reports that he's just landed in New York City, where he'll live for a year. Welcome! 

-- sdh

Comments

[Terence Winch]

Very cool. Who doesn't love great typography?

[Diann Blakely]

Certain fonts make me weak in the knees! Such a calendar might overcome me completely and never allow me to get from one month to another!

[Kay]

I, too, have been using the Studio Hinrichs typography calendar for the past few years. As a matter of fact, I have kept all the calendar pages!

I'm a designer, and I, too, love typography. Gertrude-and-Alice sure is fun!