This course focuses on the role that changes in tools and technology have had on the evolution of the letterform. Technological innovations often open new possibilities but also come with unique limitations, both of which create an environment for creative solutions. Special attention will be paid to the major technological landmarks and their influence on typeface design. Topics will include broad nib vs pointed quill, hot metal typesetting, phototypesetting, screen fonts, and others.
About Alexander Tochilovsky
Alexander Tochilovsky received his BFA from the Cooper Union and his MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art. He is the owner/operator, together with Mike Essl, of The Studio of ME/AT, a graphic design studio in New York City, focusing on print design. He is also an adjunct instructor at the Cooper Union, and the Curator of the Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography. In 2009 he co-curated the exhibition Lubalin Now , and since 2010 he has curated three other exhibitions: Appetite (2010), Pharma (2011) & Type@Cooper (2012), all at the Cooper Union. Alexander teaches the history and theory component of typeface design at Type@Cooper, the postgraduate certificate program he co-founded in 2010.
