An exercise in expertly balancing abstraction and readability, Josef Albers' Kombinationschrift alphabet was hugely influential on the career of Jonathan Quainton, founder of London studio Sawdust. In retrospect, it was while studying at college that I first discovered my passion for typography, which as it happened turned out to be my future profession. Back then my approach was largely rather unorthodox as I was mostly drawn towards the creation of my own expressive interpretations of letterforms rather than the more traditional practice.

What really excited me was experimenting with the balance between readability and abstraction. Art movements like De Stijl, Art Deco, Bauhaus and Constructivism were hugely inspiring and still continue to have an influential element in my typographic work today.

For this reason I have decided to pick the letter 's' from the Kombinationschrift alphabet designed by Josef Albers. My choice is based upon its important influence relating to my own personal development rather than just a favourite which could be from so many.

Albers' Kombinationschrift alphabet was a modular lettering system based upon ten basic shapes derived from a circle and a square. This efficient typographic design was typical of the work derived from the Bauhaus school, which has ultimately influenced and changed the type world ever since.

For those who aren't familiar with him, Josef Albers (1886-1976) was both a student and a teacher at the Bauhaus. Principally an abstract painter, Albers was also a designer and typographer.

Originally his constructivist typeface was only created as drawings but fortunately they have now been recreated digitally by the P22 foundry. They have been made available as a set of typefaces produced in conjunction with the Guggenheim Museum and the Josef Albers Foundation.

madebysawdust.co.uk
Jonathan Quainton

…is one of the founders of London-based studio Sawdust. Working for clients like The New York Times Magazine, Wired and IBM, Sawdust specialises in creating bespoke typefaces for clients as part of larger identity projects. Recently the duo were asked by magazine Men’s Health to develop a typeface that would introduce several features about pain, which they constructed from x-ray-style illustrations of broken and repined bones.
P22 Albers

This series of typefaces was developed by Richard Kegler in 1995 from the original drawings and notes made by Josef Albers while he was at the Bauhaus. Like many of P22’s typefaces it was created in conjunction with relevant art organisations, in this case the Guggenheim Museum and the Josef Albers Foundation. This form of collaboration helps insure the historical accuracy of the typefaces, while making them usable for today’s digital landscape.

















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