The Indian banknote itself has 17 languages in some 11 scripts, including Latin.” Photo by Jo De Baerdemaeker. This instance of Bengali was found in the UK, but Ross adds, “Multiscript labelling is very common in India. I am especially pleased to see my work in daily use in Kolkata’s leading newspaper and in the volumes of the Murty Classical Library of India. Uses include airport signage in India, on a tin of curry powder, US party election literature, and even on a corner shop’s facade in Zürich. Particularly in India but also elsewhere, like the UK. Do you often get the opportunity to see your type designs in use? Such a methodology enables one to make informed design decisions. In teaching I have always advocated that students develop a research-based design methodology suited to their interests. I rely a great deal on primary sources - for example, archival materials such as those in the Non-Latin Type Collection at the University of Reading, and also authoritative secondary literature on allied disciplines. My research informs my practice, and vice versa. How have you typically balanced academic research with learning from the field? You are a prolific writer regarding non-Latin type design, in more than one instance “writing the book” on certain topics. There, we designed original Indian and Thai typefaces and also worked on and produced Arabic typefaces in conjunction with calligraphers or external designers. I eventually headed the Department of Typographic Development at Linotype, which included the Design Studio. I was very conscious of the mismatch between the beautiful literature and Indian scripts on the one hand and their often poor representation in print on the other. My first task was working on Arabic font layouts, but I became increasingly involved in the design of Indian-script typefaces, thanks to my background and the openness of Walter Tracy and Matthew Carter to listen to - and in fact, seek - my opinion regardless of my age and typographic inexperience. I had a background in Indian languages and literature, but I did not specialise in Indian-script typefaces. I began as a Research Assistant at Linotype, but there was no clear career path.
Was there a clear career path when you started out at Linotype, or were you playing things more by ear?
We were delighted when Fiona agreed to answer a few of our questions about her fascinating career and her work on non-Latin script designs. The population that reads Bengali, for example, is about the same size as the population of the United States, and Devanagari even larger than that. The designs that came out from her department went on to become some of the most widely-used type designs in the world. Fiona Ross began working at Linotype (UK) in 1978 and eventually headed up their non-Latin Typographic Department - becoming the first woman manager at the company.
0 kommentar(er)
