monograph

ERic Gill SculptoR of lEttERS


Matt cur tin

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6 the Artist

7 Career and Influences

13 perpetua

15 Gill Sans

19 Joanna

22 Bibliography

23 Image Index

Table of Contents

“In Typography, a clear line is drawn between mechanized industry, seen as the

work of many as opposed to fine craftsmanship, being the work of the individual.” —Eric Gill An Essay On Typography

During the early 20th century, Arthur Eric Rowton Gill was one of England’s

most exceptional artists (Figure 1). He is primarily known for his type design.

However, he utilized his talents to the fullest extending them into many other

fields. The other fields that he ventured into were: wood engraving, sculpting,

and stone cutting. His intricate and thorough design methods allowed him to

do extremely well in several other fields. Gill’s excellent attention to details

also enabled him to make contributions to the field of typography even though

he had very little background or training in type design. When he began

designing type by using his pen and brush, he was averse to using machinery.

Gill felt as though the industrial revolution and technological advances were

stripping away the creativity of the artist. By sticking to his delicate lettering

method, he was able to design eleven typefaces. Even though Eric Gill lacked

the proper typographic training and rejected the new machine production

methods, his superb lettering and craftsmanship enabled him to create several

typefaces that were successful in his lifetime and are still currently being used.1

Born on February 22, 1882 in Brighton, England, Arthur Eric Rowton Gill was

the second child and oldest of thirteen children. His father was a

non-conforming Anglican minister and a strict disciplinarian. When Gill was a

young boy, he was interested in art and drawing.2 Specifically, he would draw

train locomotives and was very precise in trying to copy the intricate lettering

on the sides of them while living close to the railway. Gill attended a private

school in Brighton for six years, and then attended Chichester Technical and

Art School for two years. Drawing and mathematics were Gill’s favorite

classes. He considered a career in architecture. At age fifteen his formal

schooling ended.3

Figure 1. Portrait of Eric Gill as a young man (1908; age 26).

James Mosley, “Eric Gill & The Cockerel Press,”

international typeface corporation and Monotype

Imaging, http://www.itcfonts.com/Ulc/OtherArticles/

GillCockerel.htm (accessed on September 4, 2008).

1 2 Donald Attwater, A Cell of Good Living—The Life, Works,

and Opinions of Eric Gill (London: Geoffrey Chapman,

1969), 21-22.

The Artist

Elizabeth Marie, Sister, Eric Gill—Twentieth Century

Book Designer (New York: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.,

1962), 20.

3

6ERic Gill SculptoR of lEttERS

7

Career and InfluencesWhen Gill turned eighteen in 1899, he moved to London to apprentice with

the architectural firm for the Ecclesiastical Commissioners of W. H. Caroe.

This firm specialized in constructing buildings for the Anglican Church.4 As an

architect apprentice, Gill thought he would be able to assist in the designs of

the buildings, and then to have important participation in the construction

of these buildings based on the designs. However, Gill quickly learned that

this was not the way this firm operated. Instead, the Anglican clergymen and

the architect demanded that the stone mason and builder just follow their

specifications to the smallest detail. For example, the builder was to merely

copy the things designed on paper. Working in this type of authoritarian

environment not only frustrated Gill, but also caused him to change his

philosophy about his religion, politics, and work ethic.5 His political views

favored Socialism. Gill thought that art was a “matter of personal devotion

to beauty and cannot be imposed on workmen by means of drawings and

specifications.”6 Therefore, he began to attend night classes in writing, lettering,

and calligraphy at the Central School of Arts and Crafts to learn new skills.

Also, he attended night classes at the Westminster technical institute to learn

masonry. One of his teachers at the Central School was Edward Johnston, a

well-known calligrapher and stonemason. In fact, Johnston was the creator of

the london underground typeface (Figure 2).

Walter Shewring, Letters of Eric Gill (New York: The

Devin-Adair Company, 1948), 96.

Attwater, 29.4

6

Figure 2. Display of Edward Johnston’s famous London Underground typeface.

Catholic Authors, “Eric Gill (1882-1940),” Catholic

Authors. http://www.catholicauthors.com/gill.html

(accessed September 14, 2008).

5


Gill became close friends with Johnston, and he was influenced by Johnston’s

dedicated work ethic. Gill stated that “Johnston’s influence both in art and

thought altered the whole course of his life.”7 Johnston’s influence on Gill’s

lettering style can be seen when comparing two memorials that are next to

each other in chichester cathedral (Figures 3 and 4). the art of calligraphy

fascinated Gill so much that he seriously considered the business of lettering

and stone cutting. Gill wanted to be in control of designing what people

needed, and then to make what he had designed. He saw a need for letter

cutting in stone.8 After a year in training with Mr. Johnston, he obtained his first

small commission. consequently, in 1903, he gave notice to W. H. caroe that

he was giving up his architectural training to pursue a career as a calligrapher,

letter-cutter, and monumental mason. As a self-employed letter cutter, he began

to receive many small commissions from churches and other private projects

for stone cutting and lettering, and this led to even larger jobs, such as the

lettering for the new Cambridge medical schools.9

Now, as a stonemason, Gill had the means to support a family. On August 6,

1904, at twenty-two years of age, he married Ethel Hester Moore. Working

as a stonemason, he carved tombstones and lettering on monuments. for

additional income, Gill would also teach classes. He taught gilding at the

central School of Arts and crafts and lettering at the lcc paddington

institute.10 While he was performing his stonemason work, Gill also became

involved in hand-drawn lettering for book publishers. It was stated that Gill’s

exquisite hand-lettering with pen and brush was able to turn an ordinary book

into a beautiful work of art (Figure 5).

Figure 3. Memorial to Percy Joseph Hiscock (stone carving).

Figure 4. Memorial to Henry Holding Moore (stone carving).

Attwater, 34

Attwater, 33 Marie, 217 8

9 Garton & Co. and Scolar Press, “Eric Gill,” Garton

& Co. and Scolar Press. http://www.ericgill.com/

view_article.php?article_id=33&sort_by= (accessed

on September 3, 2008).

10

8ERic Gill SculptoR of lEttERS

9

Gill’s earlier training with Edward Johnston began to show in his work. His

work was described as showing “purity and severity,” and his forms as losing

“all extraneous and superfluous detail in favour of a more austere and

abstract method of representation.”11 At this time, Gill was asked to design a

corporate identity for the bookstore chain, W. H. Smith & Sons. this identity

included store front signs and unique letterforms for the bookstore (Figure

6). Subsequently, this company proceeded to reproduce Gill’s hand-drawn

lettering by the means of photographic technology. this photographic process

disgusted Gill because he felt that it was extremely dishonest and covered the

genuineness of the original lettering of the artist. He was so aggravated by this

“photographic scaling of his artwork”12 that he began to engrave his lettering

in wood. Gill hoped that by carving his lettering into wood, his forms would be

protected from being manipulated by machines.

Mosley, 1. Garton & co. and Scolar press, 1.11 12

Figure 6. W.H. Smith & Sons corporate identity that Gill designed. Figure 5. Gill’s exquisite hand lettering with pen and brush.


10

in 1909, Gill temporarily stopped his stone-cutting business to teach himself

how to carve his first sculpture, Estin Thalassa. However, his Mother and

Child sculpture of 1912 brought him public notice (Figure 7). During this

time period, most sculptors would build their model first out of clay, and

then reproduce the clay model into a plaster mold. Then the sculpture was

completed by having a professional stone mason reproduce the plaster model

into stone by using machines and tools. Again, Gill did things differently. He

did not use a clay model. instead, he carved his model directly from the

stone. Gill stated in his autobiography that “without knowing it, I was making

a little revolution. I was reuniting what never should have been separated:

the artist as a man of creation and the artist as a workman.”13 At first, the art

world couldn’t believe that sculpting could be approached by this method,

but then eventually they accepted Gill and his approach. Even though the

art world accepted him, Gill thought that the art world was too “stuffy with

aesthetes, dilettantes, poseurs, and agnostics.”14 Again, Gill began to question

his philosophy and religion. The religion of Gill’s past had made him turn away

because he believed the Anglican clergyman were selfish and didn’t care about

the welfare of their congregation. As a result, Gill sought to establish his own

religion, but then he realized that the beliefs that he had coincided with the

Roman catholic religion.15

Marie, 22.

St. Wilford’s Church, “People-Eric Gill,” St. Wilford’s

Church. http://www.wilfrid.com/people/eric_gill.htm


catholic Authors, 4.

15

1413

Figure 7. Sculpture created by Eric Gill in 1912 entitled Mother and Child that brought him public notice.


11

Accordingly, in 1913, on his twenty-ninth birthday, Gill and his family joined the

Roman Catholic Church. After this event, it was evident in Gill’s work that his

religion played an important part in his life.16 from 1913 to 1917, he carved

the Stations of the cross for Westminster cathedral (Figure 8). While he was

designing the stations, he met the typographer, Stanley Morison. When the

Stations of the Cross were presented to the public on Good Friday in 1918,

the public began to consider Gill one of the best sculptors in the world. In

1915, Gill and Douglas Pepler established St. Dominic’s Press. Now that he had

his private printing press, Gill began to express his philosophies and religious

views through essays, pamphlets, and books. His vision was for the world to

abide by the way or the rule of the Lord. In other words, placing accountability

or responsibility on the people to do God’s will. Gill also believed that God

created man in His own image and likeness. Therefore, like God, man was

intended to be a creator, and, as a creator, he should do the majority of the

work and should be in control of the means of production. Contrary to these

beliefs were assembly-line mass production/mechanical industrialism and

capitalism.17 Also at this time, Gill began to lose interest in politics. He stated

“politics are not my line of business.”18

Marie, 23.

Attwater, 157.

Attwater, 180-190.16

18

17

Figure 8. Fourteenth Station of the Cross at Westminster Cathedral (1917).


Figure 9. War Memorial at the University of Leeds (1923).

12

Again, Gill used his printing press to express his opinions concerning indus-

trialism and capitalism. Gill disliked industrialism because he thought that it

separated what God had joined together, the body and the mind. Industrialism

took away the uniqueness of art. Instead of being in control of their creations,

workers and artists became slaves or tools to the machines. Likewise, Gill be-

lieved capitalism exploited the worker. Capitalism was in complete opposition

to Gill’s lifestyle. Gill lived in a very frugal manner in mostly isolated communi-

ties. Money to him was the root or cause of all evil.19 In his lifetime he wasn’t

trying to acquire enormous wealth or many material possessions. Gill stated

that “The work which I have chiefly tried to do in my life is this: to make a cell

of good living in the chaos of our world.”20 When Gill would figure his cost

for each job, he based his figures on what it would cost per hour to provide

for himself and his family, and also to pay for materials and overhead costs.21

In other words, Gill was simply using his God-given talents to create things in

order to obtain just enough money to support himself and his family.22

In 1918, Gill was drafted into the Royal Air Force, but he was only stationed

in England for four months until the war ended. At the end of World War I,

Gill obtained many orders for war memorials.23 One in particular was the war

memorial for the University of Leeds in 1923. Gill felt that the war was mainly

about money. therefore, he designed the monument depicting Jesus christ as

a priest chasing men and women with a whip. The men and women were to

represent the world of money and business (Figure 9).24

Attwater, 171. Attwater, 11

Attwater, 68. catholic Authors, 5-6.

Attwater, 66.

Attwater, 80.18 19

20 21

22

23 24 Attwater, 80.


13

In November, 1925, Gill started drawing alphabets for Stanley Morison who

was the typographical adviser for the Lanston Monotype Corporation. The

Lanston Monotype Corporation were the makers of the mechanical

type-composing machines.25 Stanley Morison was well-known for being

the designer of the Times New Roman typeface for the Lanston Monotype

corporation.26 Gill had met Morison previously while working for a Catholic

publishing company. Gill began by drawing the letters with brush and ink based

upon his own stone cut letters. He was not aware of the current technology

being used by popular type designers during this industrial age. in fact, he be-

lieved that the reliance on machinery took away the individuality of the artist.

Eventually, his drawings would turn out to become Gill’s first typeface, even

though he had initially wanted nothing to do with type design for machine

production. He stated that “typography was not his country,”27 and that he had

no practical background or training in type design for printing. Subsequently,

Stanley Morison sent Gill’s drawings to Charles Malin, a Frenchman, to hand

punch-cut Gill’s drawings into steel. In 1929, when Gill was forty-seven years

old, the Lanston Monotype Corporation finally released his new typeface. This

typeface was called Perpetua (Figure 10). Gill named it after Saint perpetua. Gill

stated that the Lanston Monotype Corporation had produced a font which

had the characteristics that he looked for in a good book type — “common

placeness and normality.”28 Art Nonsense was the first book published in 1930

that used Perpetua. Another example of the Perpetua typeface can be found in

Poling Church in West Sussex used on a wall plaque remembering the life of

Sir Harry Johnston. later in 1929, a Greek version of Perpetua was designed.

Figure 10. The Perpetua Typeface designed by Eric Gill in 1929.

Attwater, 121. Typophile, “Eric Gill-Typophile,” Typophile.

http://typophile.com/node/12115? (accessed

September 5, 2008).Nicholas fabian, “the Master Sculptor of letters—

Eric Gill” Nicholas Fabian. http://web.archive.org/

web/20000823071200/ (accessed September 3, 2008). Attwater, 124.

Marie, 119.25 26

27

28

29

Perpetua

The uppercase letters of the typeface were developed based on the charac-

teristics of the Trajan Roman column’s inscriptions (Figure 11). The lower case

letters of the typeface were designed to be in complete agreement with the

uppercase letters. There was no embellishment to the letters. The hair-line

serifs that were included in this typeface rather than the typical slab-like serifs

were important in creating a more readable type. In fact, this type was consid-

ered to be one of the most readable of the Twentieth Century types.29


Figure 11. Trajan inscription, circa 114 A.D.

15

The origin of Gill’s next typeface, Gill Sans, began when Gill painted several

signs to provide directions around a monastery. the lettering for the signs

was the same sans-serif lettering designed by Edward Johnston for the station

names on the London Underground which Gill had worked on while work-

ing with Johnston. The sans-serif letters did not have serifs. In typography, serifs

are the small features at the end of strokes within letters. A typeface without

serifs is called sans-serif. Sans is a French word meaning without (Figure 12).

Serifs originated when letters were being carved into stone to be used for the

Roman alphabet. the additional spaces left at the end of the long strokes of the

letters were to prevent gravel and dust from collecting in the corners of the

letters.30 Usually, serif fonts were used for long bodies of text because the serifs

help to guide the eye along, but the sans serif fonts were used for headings and

for smaller portions of text.31 Then Gill was commissioned by Douglas Clever-

don, a publisher and bookseller, to design a sign that was to be placed over his

shop. Again, Gill utilized the sans-serif lettering of Edward Johnston for this job.

When Gill had completed his sketch of the design for this sign, Stanley Morison

saw it, and again he asked Gill to draw another alphabet using these sans-serif

letters for the lanston Monotype corporation. the reason Stanley Morison

requested Gill to do this was because he thought it was necessary for the

lanston Monotype corporation to develop a typeface in order to compete

with Germany’s Erbar, Futura, and Kabel typefaces.32 Morison thought Gill’s let-

tering was unique and different from the traditional typefaces and would help

Monotype stand out in the field of typography.33

Gill Sans

Figure 12. Comparison of a serif and a sans serif typeface.

NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Sans serif.” Nation-

Master. http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/

Sans-serif (accessed September 2, 2008).

NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Sans serif,” 2.

Mosley, 2

Phil Baines and Andrew Haslam, Type and Typography

(New York: Watson-Guptill Pub., 2002).

30 31

32

33


16

In 1928, this typeface was released by the Lanston Monotype Corporation.

Gill Sans was created by using lettering techniques of a stone cutter and with

little consideration of current type design technology. In spite of this, it was

very successful commercially. When Gill Sans was used for the London &

North Eastern Railway system in 1929, it became an immediate success.34 in

addition, Gill created a sign or nameplate for the Flying Scotsman (Figure 13),

their famous locomotive. When the lanston Monotype corporation intro-

duced the Super Caster, the Gill Sans typeface family was made available in

sizes up to 72 point. Gill Sans became the Lanston Monotype Corporation’s

fifth top-selling typeface (Figure 14). penguin Books also used it for its book

jacket designs. Gill Sans grew in use and popularity, and with this growth, came

new line weights.35 Each weight of the font brought with it new characteristics,

because each of them were produced by a unique design method instead of

being “mechanically produced from a single design.”36 later, Gill admitted that

he needed to thank Edward Johnston for the success of the Gill Sans typeface.

He wrote a letter to him saying, “I hope you realize that I take every opportu-

nity of proclaiming the fact that what the Monotype people call Gill Sans owes

all its goodness to your Underground letter.”37

Figure 13. Nameplate for the Flying Scotsman, the famous locomotive for the London & North Eastern Railway created by Eric Gill.

Figure 14. Gill Sans typeface created by Eric Gill for Lanston Monotype Corporation in 1928. It became this corporation’s fifth top-selling typeface of the 20th Century.

claire Badaracco, “Rational language and print Design

in Communication Management,” Design Issues 12,

(1996), 26-37, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1511743


Mosley, 2

Monotype, “Hidden Gems,” Monotype. http://

www.monotypefonts.com/Library/HiddenGems.

asp?show=gillsans (accessed September 26, 2008).

Attwater, 121

34 35

36

37


17

Edward Johnston’s sans-serif lettering was designed for display only, but Gill

was designing his typeface to be able to function as a text face and also to be

used for display.38 Like his first typeface, Perpetua, Gill modeled the uppercase

of the Gill Sans typeface on the Roman capitals of the inscriptions found on the

Column of Trajan (Figure 11).39 Being based on the roman letterforms and not

so much on geometric shapes made the letters more readable or legible. Gill

Sans is legible even though it has a very small x-height, which normally has a

negative affect on the readability of a typeface. The x-height is the height of the

lowercase letters. When using the Gill Sans typeface, more text could be set in

a certain space than with other sans serif typefaces.40 Also, it was the first sans

serif that had true italic characteristics.41 the capital “M” of Gill Sans is based on

the dimensions of a square with the middle part of the letter meeting at the

center. The lowercase letters are modeled on the Carolingian lettering (Figure

15). This is especially obvious in the lowercase of the two-story “a” and “g.”

The lowercase “t” is similar to the traditional serifs in its proportion and in its

slanted ending of its vertical stroke. The lowercase of the italic “a” is designed

as a single story. the italic “e” is very calligraphic, and the lowercase “p” has a

calligraphic tail similar to the italics of Caslon and Baskerville.42 Also, compared

to other sans serif typefaces, Gill Sans had stronger contrasts between stroke

widths of its letter forms.43

Figure 15. Sample of the Carolingian lettering style that had influence on the development of Gill Sans.

The final typeface that Gill would design for the Monotype Corporation in

1929 was called Solus. in designing this typeface, he used Egyptian or square-

cut, slab-like serifs. Ultimately, this typeface was not accepted because it was

not that much different in text size from the Perpetua typeface.44 This was Gill’s

final typeface for the Monotype Corporation because he had entered into an

agreement with Robert Gibbings, owner of the Golden Cockerel Press, which

prevented him from designing new types for the Monotype Corporation.45

Attwater, 121. NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Gill Sans.” Nation-

Master. http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/

Gill-Sans (accessed September 10, 2008).Montype, 1.

The Eric Gill Society. “Eric Gill (Arthur Eric Rowton

Gill, 1882-1940).” The Eric Gill Society. http://www.

ericgill.org.uk/work/eric-gill-arthur-eric-rowton-gill-

18821940 (accessed September 3, 2008).

NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Gill Sans,” 2.

Monotype, 1.

Allen Haley. Typographic Milestones. (New York: John

Wiley & Sons, 1992.)

Mosley, 338 39

40

4142

43

44 45


18

During this time, the Golden Cockerel Press wanted to design its own type

so that the type would match their images. Gill was already illustrating many

books for the Golden cockerel press. therefore, in 1929, Gill took on this

challenge to actually design his first type. Another design accomplishment

for Gill was that he placed type and illustrations together to form one image

(Figure 16). He wanted this type to be “a heavy closely-massed type suitable

for use with modern wood engravings.”46 As he was creating this type, Gill was

also learning to be a type designer. Gill wrote to Morison, “Am at a loss how

to proceed. I have made drawings to a large scale, but how am I to tell what

they’ll look like small?”47 finally, Gill had his small sketches photographically

enlarged. By doing this, he was able to work on the details of the letters, and

then he reduced his sketches back to the smaller size. Even though Gill had

initially despised using a machine to photograph his work, now he saw its use

as an asset. He began to see the need for the use of certain machines. in 1931,

the Golden Cockerel type was used to print The Hundredth Story by

A. E. coppard.

Figure 16. Example of Gill using type and illustrations to form one visual image.

Mosley, 4 Mosley, 3-4.46 47


Gill began drawing another serif font in 1930 for private use by his own print-

ing press, Hague and Gill (Figure 17). He named this typeface after his daughter,

Joanna. By creating this typeface, Gill showed that he had acquired the skill

of quickly drawing his images in order for them to be easily transformed into

metal. When designing this typeface, Gill used the type faces of Robert Gran-

jon as a model. The Granjon influence can be easily seen in the main structure

of both the roman and italic forms of Joanna. However, Gill’s italics have a

three-degree slope, which makes the letters more vertical than Granjon’s. Gill

described this typeface as “a book face free from all fancy business.”48 in fact,

Gill used this typeface for printing his book entitled, An Essay on Typography.

Recently, the print materials for Senator Barack Obama’s presidential campaign

have used the Joanna typeface. After Joanna, Gill designed the Aries and Flori-

ated Capitals typefaces in 1932, Bunyan typeface in 1934, Pilgrim typeface, which

was a recut version of Bunyan in 1953, and Jubilee (also known as Cunard) in

1934. He also attempted to create an Arabic typeface, but it was never cut.49

19

During this period, Gill was asked to carve statues over the entrance of the

Broadcasting House of BBC’s corporate headquarters that he called Prospero

and Arial from the Shakespearian play, The Tempest.50 in addition, he designed

a postage stamp for the Post Office in 1937. In 1938, he created a three bas-

relief in stone for the Assembly Hall for the league of Nations building in Ge-

neva, Switzerland. He called it The Creation of Adam. Also at this time, Gill was

the first to receive the highest British award as a type designer. He was given

the title of Royal Designer for Industry.51 In early 1949, Gill was diagnosed with

lung cancer. Thereafter, he began to write his Autobiography, and in December

of that year, it was published. On November 17, 1940, at 5:00 a.m., Eric Gill

died of lung cancer at Harefield House Hospital in Middlesex, England.

Joanna

Figure 17. Joanna typeface designed by Eric Gill in 1930.

Ascenderfonts.com. “Joanna font: Joanna 2 family

(3 fonts).” Ascenderfonts.com. www.ascenderfonts.

com/font/Joanna-2-family.aspx (accessed September

28, 2008).

Gregory Graalfs. “Gill Sands.” Print 52 (1998): 108. BBC. “Key Facts-Broadcasting House, London.” BBC.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/keyfacts/stories/

broadcasting_house.shtml (accessed September 20,

2008).

Wikipedia. “Eric Gill.” Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. http://

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Gill (accessed September

4, 2008).

48 49 50 51


20

Eric Gill was a truly remarkable man. He wasn’t satisfied in one career. In order

to express his artistic abilities, Gill wanted to explore different mediums. He

was so motivated to use his God-given talents that he wanted to extend them

to the fullest. Gill stated that “Only with God can a man give himself over at

the same time, first to his God and second to something which is a reflection

of his God.”52 in spite of Gill detesting the use of machinery and living in a capi-

talistic society, his motivation compelled him to explore other unfamiliar fields.

in his book, An Essay on Typography, he said that “a clear line is drawn between

mechanized industry, seen as the work of many as opposed to fine craftsman-

ship, being the work of the individual.”53 Also, it was because of his special

attention to details and his excellent craftsmanship that he was able to succeed

in the field of typography. The typefaces that Gill created remain popular to

this day because of his excellent lettering and craftsmanship. For example, the

BBc uses Gill Sans as its corporate typeface (Figure 18). other corporations

using Gill Sans include AMD, Beltronics Sti Driver Radar Detector, Benetton

Group, Carlton Television, Channel 4, Cunard Line, Firedog, Fox News Chan-

nel, Saab Automobiles, and many others. Gill Sans has endured the changes of

modern technology. its readability is as easy on a computer screen as it is on

a printed page. Naturally, it became Britain’s most commonly used typeface.54

today, Gill Sans is in digital form packaged by the Macintosh operating system.

On his gravestone Gill labeled himself as a stone carver. However, his diverse

contributions to type design and his other artistic pursuits make this descrip-

tion far too simplistic. Gill will always be remembered for extending his talents

as a stone carver to combine them with his artistic abilities. His artistic abilities

of drawing elegant lines and using meticulous lettering gave him the opportu-

nity to make significant contributions to the field of typography.55

Figure 18. The BBC, a British telecommunication corporation, uses Gill Sans as part of their identity.

Marie, 175-176. Delve Withrington. “An Essay on typography By Eric

Gill (1882-1940).” Typebooks. http://www.typebooks.

org/r-essay.htm (accessed September 4, 2008).NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Gill Sans,” 2-3.

fabian, 2.

52

53

54

55


BibliographyAscenderfonts.com. “Joanna font: Joanna 2 Family (3 fonts).” Ascenderfonts.com. www.ascenderfonts.com/font/Joanna-2- family.aspx (accessed September 28, 2008).

Attwater, Donald. A Cell of Good Living—The life, Works, and opinions of Eric Gill. london: Geoffrey chapman, 1969.

Badaracco, claire. “Rational language and print Design in communication Manage ment.” Design Issues 12 (1996): 26-37, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1511743, (accessed September 27, 2008).

Baines, Phil, and Andrew Haslam. Type & Typography. New York: Watson-Guptill publications, 2002.

BBC. “Key Facts-Broadcasting House, London.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/ keyfacts/stories/broadcasting_house.shtml (accessed September 20, 2008).

Catholic Authors. “Eric Gill (1882-1940).” Catholic Authors. http://www.catholicauthors.com/gill.html (accessed September 14, 2008).

The Eric Gill Society. “Eric Gill (Arthur Eric Rowton Gill, 1882-1940).” The Eric Gill Society. http://www.ericgill.org.uk/work/ericgill-arthur-eric-rowton-gill-1882-1940 (accessed September 3, 2008).

fabian, Nicholas. “the Master Sculptor of Letters—Eric Gill.” Nicholas Fabian. http://web.archive.org/web/ 20000823071200/ (accessed September 3, 2008).

NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Sans Serif.” NationMaster. http://www.nationmaster.com/ encyclopedia/Sans-Serif (accessed September 2, 2008).

Samara, timothy. typography Workbook—A Real-World Guide to using type in Graphic Design. Gloucester : Rockport publishers, 2004.

Shewring, Walter. Letters of Eric Gill. New York: The Devin-Adair Company, 1948.

St. Wilford’s Church. “People-Eric Gill.” St. Wilford’s Church. http://www.wilfrid.com/ people/eric_gill.htm (accessed September 20, 2008).

The Eric Gill Society. “Eric Gill (Arthur Eric Rowton Gill, 1882-1940).” The Eric Gill Society. http://www.ericgill.org.uk/work/ericgill-arthur-eric-rowton-gill-18821940 (accessed September 3, 2008).

Typophile. “Eric Gill-Typophile.” Typophile. http://typophile.com/node/12115? (accessed September 5, 2008).

Wikipedia. “Eric Gill.” Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Gill (accessed September 4, 2008).

Wikipedia. “Joanna (typeface).” Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Joanna_(typeface) (accessed on September 3, 2008).

Withrington, Delve. “An Essay on typography By Eric Gill (1882-1940).” Typebooks. http://www.typebooks.org/r-essay.htm (accessed September 4, 2008).

Garton & Co. and Scolar Press. “Eric Gill.” Garton & co. and Scolar press. http://www.ericgill.com/view_article. php?article_id=33&sort_by= (accessed on September 3, 2008).

Graalfs, Gregory. “Gill Sands.” Print 52 (1998): 108.

Haley, Allen. Typographic Milestones. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1992.

Identifont. “Eric Gill (1882-1940).” Indentifont. http://www.identifont.com/show?12W (accessed September 5, 2008).

Linotype. “Font Designer—Eric Gill.” Linotype. http://www.linotype.com/391/ericgill. html?PHP (accessed September 3, 2008).

Marie, Elizabeth Sister. Eric Gill—Twentieth Century Book Designer. New York: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1962.

Majoor, Martin. “My Type Design Philosophy.” SearchFreeFonts.com. http://www.searchfree fonts.com/articles/my-type-design-philosophy. htm (accessed September 2, 2008).

Monotype. “Hidden Gems.” Monotype. http://www.monotypefonts.com/ Library/ HiddenGems.asp?show=gillsans (accessed September 26, 2008).

Mosley, James. “Eric Gill & The Cockerel Press.” international typeface corporation and Monotype Imaging. http://www.itcfonts.com/ Ulc/OtherArticles/GillCockerel.htm (accessed on September 4, 2008).

NationMaster. “Encyclopedia—Gill Sans.” NationMaster. http://www.nationmaster.com/ encyclopedia/Gill-Sans (accessed September 10, 2008).

Image IndexContents Image. illustration by Eric Gill, from Marie, Elizabeth Sister. Eric Gill—Twentieth Century Book Designer. New York: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1962, 161. Figure 1. portrait of Eric Gill as a young man (1908; age 26), from Marie, Elizabeth Sister. Eric Gill—Twentieth Century Book Designer. New York: The Scarecrow Press, inc., 1962, 170.

Figure 2. Display of Edward Johnston’s famous london underground typeface, from Retrozoom. “london transport Museum.” Flixr.com. http://www.flickr.com/ photos/retrozoom/2157266085/.

Figure 3. Memorial to Percy Joseph Hiscock (stone carving), from St. Wilford’s Church. “People-Eric Gill.” St. Wilford’s Church. http://www.wilfrid.com/people/eric_gill.htm (accessed September 20, 2008)

Figure 4. Memorial to Henry Holding Moore (stone carving), from St. Wilford’s Church. “People-Eric Gill.” St. Wilford’s Church. http://www.wilfrid.com/people/ eric_gill.htm (accessed September 20, 2008)

Figure 5. Example of Gill’s exquisite hand lettering with pen and brush, from Marie, Elizabeth Sister. Eric Gill—Twentieth Century Book Designer. New York: The Scarecrow press, inc., 1962, 149.

Figure 6. W.H. Smith & Sons corporate identity that Gill designed, from Jason thomas. “HighStreet W-H-Smith & Son 1946.” Flickr.com. http://www.flickr.com/ photos/jsn-1/2299668905/.

Figure 7. Sculpture created by Eric Gill in 1912 entitled Mother and Child that brought him public notice, from Attwater, Donald. A cell of Good living—the life, Works, and opinions of Eric Gill. london: Geoffrey chapman, 1969.

Figure 8. Fourteenth Station of the Cross at Westminster Cathedral (1917), from Attwater, Donald. A Cell of Good Living— the life, Works, and opinions of Eric Gill. london: Geoffrey chapman, 1969.

Figure 9. War Memorial at the University of Leeds (1923), from Attwater, Donald. A Cell of Good living—the life, Works, and opinions of Eric Gill. london: Geoffrey chapman, 1969.

Figure 10. the Perpetua typeface designed by Eric Gill in 1929, from Matthew Curtin. “Perpetua.”

Figure 11. trajan inscription, circa 114 A.D., from David McGaw. “Trajan’s Column, Base Inscription.” Flixr.com. http://www.flickr.com/ photos/mcgaw/427714161/.

Figure 12. comparison of a serif and a sans serif typeface, from Matthew Curtin. “Serif vs. Sans Serif.”

Figure 13. Nameplate for the Flying Scotsman, the famous locomotive for the London & North Eastern Railway created by Eric Gill, from Anthony Hope. “4472 flying Scotsman.” Flickr.com. http://www.flickr.com/ photos/scarlet-lancer165/202743133/.

Figure 14. Gill Sans typeface created by Eric Gill for lanston Monotype corporation in 1928. It became this corporation’s fifth top-selling typeface of the 20th Century, from Matthew Curtin. “Gill Sans.”

Figure 15. Sample of the Carolingian lettering style that had influence on the development of Gill Sans, from Michael Hochleitner. “Carolingian handwriting.” Flickr.com. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ wasianed/2454903016/.

Figure 16. Example of Gill using type and illustrations to form one visual image, from Marie, Elizabeth Sister. Eric Gill—Twentieth Century Book Designer. New York: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1962, 109.

Figure 17. Joanna typeface designed by Eric Gill in 1930, from Matthew Curtin. “Joanna.”

Figure 18. the BBc, a British telecommunication corporation, uses Gill Sans as part of their identity, from Warren pilkington. “this is the BBC Television Service.” Flixr.com. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ zawtowers/2817514831/ (accessed November 20, 2008).

Book Design, cover Design and typography by

Matthew Curtin

typeset in Gill Sans ultra Bold, Gill Sans light, Gill Sans

Bold, and perpetua using a Macintosh G5 and inDesign.

printed by uMBc Visual Arts Dept.

printed on international paper Hammermill 24 lb.

monograph

Design

portrait of eric gill

gill sans

frustrated gill

arthur eric rowton gill

type design

sculptor of letters

art school

intricate lettering