Typeface design education from Cooper Union
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Lettering Tricks and Techniques
with Ken Barber

Sharpen your lettering skills with this in-depth two-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. 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. 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.

Register

When:
Sat, April 26 – Sun, April 27, 2025
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Eastern Time)

Number of sessions: 2

Where:
On campus at Cooper Union
New York, NY

Price: $535


About Ken Barber

Ken Barber
Ken Barber is a letterer, type designer, author, and instructor. He blames Don Martin comics, Santa Cruz skateboard graphics, and speed metal logos for his obsession with letterforms. For over 25 years, Ken has produced distinctive logos for global brands and created award-winning fonts. His work is part of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum and the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. Ken is the type director and studio letterer at House Industries. Author of three books, his award-winning Lettering Manual was released in 2020.