Lettering Tricks and Techniques with Ken Barber

Typeface Design program at the Cooper Union, in conjunction with theType Directors Club

Type@Cooper

<DIV>Sharpen your lettering skills with this in-depth four-day workshop chock-full of profitable drawing strategies specially formulated to increase the depth and range of your personal and professional work. With over 25 years of experience, Ken Barber of House Industries will share his sure-fire recipes for producing effective and eye-catching wordmarks.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Students will begin by learning how to decode the underlying systems that are intrinsic to all well-made letterforms, before applying those elements consistently and convincingly throughout more complex compositions. Building on this approach, participants will then explore methods for blending disparate letter styles in order to create new and surprising pieces of lettering. Next, students will become acquainted with a handful of basic yet often-overlooked principles that can be interpreted to alter the appearance and behavior of letterforms in an endless variety of ways and adapt them for use in multiple design applications.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>The essential concepts introduced over the course of this workshop will be supported by detailed slide presentations, interactive drawing demonstrations, practical skill-building practices, and constructive feedback during one-on-one critiques. Although instruction will focus on developing pencil-drawing techniques, a brief presentation covering the basics of vectorizing will be offered. Open to students of all skill levels.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>Required Materials</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV>
<UL>
<LI> No.2 pencils (conventional or mechanical)</LI>
<LI> pencil sharpener (if applicable)</LI>
<LI> erasers (conventional and kneaded)</LI>
<LI>pad of tracing paper (9″×12″ pad is recommended)</LI>
<LI>pad of quadrille 4×4 grid/graph paper (9″×12″ pad, 4 squares per linear inch is recommended)</LI>
<LI>12 inch ruler</LI>
<LI> Sharpie® Fine and Extra Fine markers</LI>
<LI> white-out correction fluid pen</LI>
<LI> adhesive tape for posting sketches</LI>
</UL>
</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Please note that a portion of the material that will be presented was originally included in the instructor’s Found Lettering workshop conducted at The Cooper Union in June 2015.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN><STRONG>Ken Barber</STRONG> is a letterer, type designer and type director at design studio and type foundry </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.houseind.com/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">House Industries</A><SPAN>. He is also a partner of </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.photolettering.com/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Photo-Lettering, Inc.</A><SPAN>, the online lettering-vending service nominated by the Design Museum London as a 2011 Design of the Year recipient. Ken's work is in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution’s </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.cooperhewitt.org/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum</A><SPAN> and has been honored by the New York </SPAN><A HREF="http://tdc.org/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Type Directors Club</A><SPAN>. </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.atypi.org/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Association Typographique Internationale</A><SPAN> recently selected several of his typefaces for inclusion in the organization’s decennial design competition. In addition to teaching at </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.mica.edu/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Maryland Institute College of Art</A><SPAN>, Ken regularly lectures internationally on the subjects of lettering and typography. He also manages </SPAN><A HREF="http://www.typeandlettering.com/" TARGET="_blank" DATA-MSYS-CLICKTRACK="0" REL="nofollow noopener noreferrer">typeandlettering.com</A><SPAN>, an online resource for students and attendees of his frequent workshops.</SPAN></DIV>

Cooper Union

Our {communityGuidelinesLink} describe the sort of content we prohibit on Eventbrite. If you suspect an event may be in violation, you can report it to us so we can investigate.

To report other categories of prohibited or illegal content, submit {link}

Lettering Tricks and Techniques with Ken Barber

More events from Type@Cooper

Discover more events from Type@Cooper, from Business to other experiences you might love.

Still looking for the right event?

Explore all events in New York and filter by date, category, and more to find the perfect fit.

Lettering Tricks and Techniques with Ken Barber

More events from Type@Cooper

Discover more events from Type@Cooper, from Business to other experiences you might love.

More Business events

Browse more Business events with different dates, prices, and formats to find your next great experience.

Still looking for the right event?

Explore all events in New York and filter by date, category, and more to find the perfect fit.