When Print for Good —a UK-based initiative that creates goods to help raise money for charitable causes— hit me up about collaborating on a project, I couldn’t wait to cook up something. Paging through a reprint of Thomas Tomkins’ 1777 masterpiece, The Beauties of Writing, I decided to letter a poster featuring a phrase celebrating the penman’s art that could commonly be found in copybooks of the day. Instead of going over the top with my interpretation, however, I tempered the design with a little 19th century American ornamental penmanship along with a touch of mid-20th century formal script lettering.
Unlike the calligraphers who inspired this piece, work started with pencil on tracing paper instead of a pointed pen or burin. After the composition and style was decided, the lettering was refined over a few rounds of revisions. The final artwork was vectorized in Adobe Illustrator before being lovingly hand-printed in bronze metallic ink on Mohawk Superfine paper by the fine folks at Print for Good.
All proceeds from the sale of this poster benefit Food For Life, an outreach program in rural India that helps to feed impoverished communities, assists in raising funds for costly medical procedures, and runs a school for girls who might not otherwise have a future. Order now before this limited edition print is sold out!
