SignLink - June / July 2024 - Issue 253

Sign Painting opens with a detailed breakdown of all the key tools and materials that the sign painter needs. This demystifies much of the confusing terminology that gets thrown around in the trade and differentiates between working with oil- and water-based paints. The book then moves on to the various techniques that sign painters need in their work. This includes advice on a wide variety of substrates (surfaces) that signs can be painted on, as well as approaches to setting out signs and lettering. It then tackles the fundamentals of working with the brush. The final part of the book is a collection of over 40 alphabets from sign painters and lettering artists around the world. Presented as double-page spreads, these should inspire new and old hands alike. Veteran sign painter Mike Meyer offers numerous top tips throughout the book, including efficiency ‘hacks’, paint storage advice, uses for knackered old brushes, and more. To close, there is a detailed glossary, list of suppliers around the world, and further reading suggestions. Signwriting Tips, Tricks and Inspiration is packed with Joby Carter’s expertise and Websites: www.bl.ag and www.ghostsigns.co.uk bevelling. There is also advice on more elaborate ornamentation and the use of colour. The final sections cover more specialist areas, such as fairground art, coach painting, and lining. These, and everything else in the book, are illustrated with numerous examples of the signwriting found all over Carters Steam Fair. The result is an explosion of colour and inspiration across the book’s pages. Since its publication in 2020, this book has been followed up with All the Fonts of the Fair by Joby Carter, which looks at the construction of 26 different alphabets in more detail. For those interested in sign painting traditions from elsewhere in the world, The Book of Fileteado Porteño is an English language introduction to this vernacular art form from Buenos Aires, Argentina. It’s not a purely technical book, with chapters on the craft’s history, iconography, and contemporary practice sitting alongside the practical guide. Alfredo Genovese also published El ABC del Fileteado Porteño in 2022 which, while in Spanish, contains lots of easy-to-follow instructions in what is a more detailed ‘how to’ publication. 29 Issue 253 - June / July 2024 email: news@signlink.co.uk ADVENTURES IN SIGN PAINTING WITH SAM ROBERTS work on his steam fair. It starts with a detailed look at seven key alphabets, with guidance on how to construct them and ways they can be used and adapted. This is supported by a general analysis of the letters of the alphabet and advice on layout, spacing, and scaling. After notes on working with a brush, the book moves into step-by-step instructions on a variety of “fancy lettering” techniques. These include blocking, shadowing, and ▲Signwriting Tips, Tricks and Inspiration By Joby Carter & Scarlett Rickard Sign Painting By Mike Meyer & Friends Signwriting Tips, Tricks and Inspiration By Joby Carter & Scarlett Rickard The Book of Fileteado Porteño By Alfredo Genovese ▼The Book of Fileteado Porteño By Alfredo Genovese

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