Heartstrings and typefaces

Vintage violin, hand-stitched book of sonatas and 19th-century walking sticks, Anges et Demons, Cunault, France, July 2008.

When editing a batch of photos for a book project, this one reminded me of another era... A time when some romantic soul might have scrawled a note of longing and left it for an admirer to find. In that spirit, the haiku popped into my head and I "wrote" it across the photograph with "Satisfaction" script. My IT guy in Florida tells me you won't be able to see the script, unless you have the same font installed on your computer. But no matter how the words appear on your screen, the intent is the same.

Moonlight sonata
Be still this force of longing;
heartstrings out of tune.

If you're a regular reader, you already know about my passion for old typeface letters and printer's cabinets. I blame it on my newspaper days, when the smell of printer's ink infused the air with the promise of constantly-evolving news and excitement. In those days to "stop the presses" was an expensive proposition. Sadly, much of the romance once associated with newspaper publishing has wafted away - along with the smell of printer's ink - as technology has improved. Paradoxically, the quality of newspaper content has declined. More and more advertisers are embracing online publications, forcing newspapers to reduce their editorial staff.

The internet has boosted development of new typefaces used for website design and advertising. This year I was thrilled to find a website that offers unique typefaces, many with interesting stories behind their design. Based in Cambridge, Mass., My Fonts has 62,506 fonts and new ones created monthly. With so many terrific choices, I dare you to pick just one!

Comments

[julochka]

i had to stop by since you visited me via tangobaby! :-) very glad i did! i too have newsprint memories...my dad had a weekly newspaper and my mom drove to nebraska every wednesday to have it printed...i can close my eyes and still smell the smell of newsprint in the back of our old green stationwagon. thank you for reminding me of that! :-)

i'll definitely be back!

:-)
/j

[JanePoet]

Excellent 'ku dear friend. Sorry to have been so out of touch, but I imagine you know why.

When I first read this, in the awesome font, I thought the second line was:

be still this farce of longing

is an interesting twist, n'est ce pas? sending you peace, love and friendship - xx, JP/deb

[Gillian]

I too love these things of which you speak.
Fontastic!!!!!!!

Fonts are fun, they are so evocative of so many things....as a child I loved calligraphy and would just write things in my journal for hours with the different nibs and colours of inks.

Yes I had friends! Sheesh!
xoxo

[A Fanciful Twist]

That is beautiful Miss Tara...

I looove fonts. Just when I think I have them I, I find out I do not, by any strecth of the imagination... And then I start acquiring or buying and pretty soon, I am getting over the top font greedy ;)

xoxoxo

[Mary T.]

My first 'real' job as a teen was in a print shop where they set type by hand! This took me back.

And the font showed up great on my computer, so I must have it installed.

[Joan O'Connor]

Tara--

I simply ADORE this post! The photo, the haiku, the elegant script text... wonderful, wonderful!

All your words remind me of my own experience, starting in journalism school. And even now I love the smell of a small magazine shop here on Polk Street, where the mags are so "fresh" that they retain the smell of the printers.

Hope you are having a good day in Paris... the sun is struggling to appear here in San Francisco just now.

Joan

[Relyn]

Oh! I love, love, love fonts. Fonts and handwriting. I find it so exciting to discover new sources of fonts. I would love to use some interesting ones on my blog, but I am afraid they would only show up on my computer. I'm so glad to hear about a new source for fonts.

I think you are exactly right about the romance of the newspaper being lost. Your post made me think of all the movies featuring newsboys and/or someone yelling, "Stop the presses!" What would we yell now? "Delete the post!" Not quite as satisfying, is it?

(By the way, I just reread your post before finishing my comment. In my case, at least, it seems your IT guy was wrong. Your words do show up in a gorgeous, curvy font on my computer. So now I may need to rethink fonts for my blog.)

[dana]

Good Saturday Tara.

Loved reading your comments just now on my blogsite......I too am bad for not getting around as regularly. Seems like life keeps getting in the way. Love this photo and the haiku. And I really like the dragonflies........and your excellent editorials on the American election race. What are you feelings about Senator Biden?

Tara responds:
Thank you, Dana! I am quite pleased about Joe Biden being Obama's running mate. I appreciate Biden's directness and straight talk, as well as his foreign affairs experience.

We're pretty psyched about it in this household. :)

Enjoy your day Tara.

d.

[Merisi]

Oh dear,
I should hire a secretary to proof read my comments! `*redfaced*

Please believe me, I have the habit of starting to leaf (and not leave *I am no Houdini!*) through books from the back forward.

[jeanie]

I don't think I have the font, but I can see the script and it is elegant, as is the violin photograph itself. Thanks for the links.

I couldn't agree with you more about the newspapers, the smell of the ink, the paper. Our city paper is a joke; the state papers not much better. I still prefer a printed piece to an online equivalent. Call it the artist in me or the writer or the memory of printing class in junior high -- who knows? But as useful as the computer is, it simply isn't the same.

Are you happy about Joe Biden? He seems a good choice to me.

[Merisi]

Sorry, I meant to write "two early 20th Century ones."

[Merisi]

I am lucky enough to be able to read your font! :-)

Among my favorite typefaces are two early Century ones, Century Gothic and Perpetua (this last one was used for WG Sebald's "Austerlitz," first American edition by Random House - it simply flows with the text and the photo illustrations, one of my most prized possessions).

Have you noticed that the once common practice of including an "About the Type" page at the end of a book is not as common anymore? I have to habit of starting to leave through no books from the back forward, and I feel a keen sense of loss when I can't find any information about the typeface.

As far as newspapers are concerned, I remember the good old days when, after reading the Washington Post, I had to go wash the ink off my hands! If I were lucky enough to remember .... ;-)

[Becca]

This is beautiful, and the font came across perfectly on my screen :)

We were just talking about newspapers yesterday - I've always loved them, althoug I really don't read actual papers anymore simply because, as you said, the quality has deteriorated (at least in our area).