Sign Initiatives
Ghost sign projects and events.
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The history of the Johnston typeface: Sign Design Society event
HAT archive contributor Mike Ashworth is giving an illustrated talk about the London Underground Johnston typeface next week on Tuesday, 3rd April. More details in the pdf below and on the Sign Design Society website. Followers of this site are eligible for a small discount, just make sure you quote ‘ghostsigns’ when you email enquiries@signdesignsociety.co.uk […]
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Graphic DNA documents the visual language of the street
I’ve recently been in regular contact with Geraldine Marshall whose project, Graphic DNA, caught my attention. It is the topic of her PhD thesis, under the supervision of Dr Caroline Archer. I took the opportunity, before she gets too busy, to ask Geraldine some questions at her base in the Midlands, from mine in South […]
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Mapping San Francisco’s Ghostsigns
This project [Link expired] is seeking to create a comprehensive google map of ghostsigns in San Francisco. It is run by Kasey Smith of the Perception Filter blog (recommended) and has already made significant progress. Many of the stories surrounding the documented signs are published on the blog, including the reveal of the one pictured […]
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Design agency OPX launches London Typographica
This site [Link expired] from OPX is aiming to build a map of lettering forms of all sorts from across the capital. These include chisselled stone, hand painted signs, plaques, shop fronts, in fact just about anything that has letters and can be seen at street level in London. It’s a bit of a lottery […]
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Chicago Ghostsigns mapped online and photographed for thesis
This website [Link expired] allows you to browse locations in Chicago and find the neighbourhood ghostsigns there. It was created by Nicole Donohoe for her thesis and has some great examples from this city which I haven’t previously seen many signs from. I’m not sure if the project is still active but there is a […]
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Spokane Students Hunt for Ghost Signs in ‘An Experiment in Public History Pedagogy’
The Public History students of Spokane have been set this brief which will get them out into the town to photograph the various ghost signs there. They’ll also have to use various historical sources to uncover the stories of the companies advertised by the signs and the people who painted them. It looks set to […]