This cache of vintage tees was recently rediscovered at the bottom of a drawer upstate. In the 80s, my uncle (an incredible sports photographer and writer who has photographed for the USTA and Nike) frequented a custom shirt kiosk at the mall. These are some of the gems he made (note the fuzzy Cooper Black type and pre-photoshop hand cutting and pasting of images):
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These 5 signs were found within a 4 block radius in Brooklyn’s DUMBO neighborhood. DUMBO is watching you.
0000Vernacular Typography tees, stationery (and unsanctioned totes) are now available at Abahouse in Japan.
Check out their posts with more pictures here and here.
Retailers interested in carrying the tees and stationery line can contact hello (at) vernaculartypography (dot) com for more information or to request a lookbook.
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Vernacular Typography is now on Twitter (@VernacularType). It will be a daily (or daily-ish) look at found lettering and design from New York City and beyond.
0010The first line of Vernacular Typography t-shirts is now available through Homestead LTD in Japan. US ordering information and other inquiries can be sent to hello[at]vernaculartypography[dot]com.
Hats, bags, and other things forthcoming.
These shirts are soft. Like really soft.
5020A preview of the new Israel section soon to be added to the main archive. Typography and lettering from Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Ein Gedi, Tzfat, Golan Heights, Negev Desert, random kibbutzim, and other places.
If you’re interested in supporting Vernacular Typography, consider making a donation to the project through Artspire & New York Foundation for the Arts 501(c)3 HERE. All contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
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c. 1995. Pencil on lined paper with mysterious water stains, 7.5 in x 10.5 in.
Private Collection
0000Summer is gone and so is Coney Island as I remember it.
Coney Island was once populated by an incredible landscape of signs and symbols. The few storefronts that retain their unique signage seem more and more endangered with every visit.
In 2004, a Creative Time initiative attempted to revive the fading signscape. A group of 25 artists formed The Dreamland Artsits Club and hand painted murals in the area as well as signs for local businesses. Sadly, even many of those have since disappeared or have become isolated fragments.
Despite neighborhood opposition, development corporations continue to homogenize and strip Coney Island of its personality, replacing beautiful and inventive lettering with horrifically bland banners that are completely devoid of any aesthetic value.
Years ago, Coney Island felt like a typographic oasis, far removed from the standardized signs and sterile typography that now overwhelms most of New York. Today, it seems more like everywhere else.
View 100 more images on the Coney Island II section of the main archive.
If you’re interested in supporting Vernacular Typography, consider making a donation to the project through Artspire & New York Foundation for the Arts 501(c)3 HERE. All contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
0050I just picked up some letterpress invitations printed at the incredible Woodside Press in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The press originally opened in 1993 in Woodside, Queens after acquiring equipment from the American Type Founders Company liquidation. In 1998, they moved to their current space, which is filled to the brim with amazing type paraphernalia and not just one, but two Linotype machines. They were nice enough to let me look around at some of their amazing stuff.
Click through for more
0080As more and more small businesses in New York are being replaced by large retail chains and banks, there are still a few neighborhoods–mostly in the outer boroughs–that retain some of their independence. Here are a few examples from a recent walk through Sunset Park in Brooklyn:
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