Visiting Artist Lecture in Photography: Thilde Jensen/
Cushing No. 2

Thilde Jensen used to wrap her camera in aluminum foil and hold it in her hand when she was working because of an environmental illness, and all her work is still affected by it.* Since printing ink is also a chemical, I made the poster without printing. Instead, I carved the information by hand on 18-inch-wide aluminum foil. The four editions of the poster differed in the degree to which they were physically crumpled, and they all had different engraved shapes. Also, the aluminum foil reflected the light in that environment, depending on where they were installed.

Cushing No. 2 was one of the typefaces produced by Cushing Publishing company. I explored the delicate nature of this type and its rounded yet sturdy forms. The clustered serifs have the look of ink smudges and the feel of being printed on paper. And there is almost no contrast between the vertical and horizontal lines, but this neutral feeling was also attractive. (read more)

The most challenging aspect of drawing this typeface was the standard between sharpness and roundness—I had to decide when to be sharp and when to be round. And the source material for these typefaces speaks in an uneven ratio of type width. By reinterpreting these movements, I created a dynamic and constant movement within this still script. It was also valuable to create different punctuation marks with a contemporary sensibility.

* Jensen, Thilde. The Canaries. Lena Publications, 2013.

Photo Document

Credits

Organizer
Sophie Schwartz

Commissioner
Yale School of Art, New Haven, CT