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The World of NGS Typesmiths
The Influence of Caslon
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NGS NEW BESPOKE
RESTORATION FONTS
FOR HISTORICALLY CORRECT LONDON SIGNWRITING
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We encounter great lettering most days we are on site in London and on really great days we get asked to reproduce them.
GROWING TYPE
As part of our in-house heritage type foundry project ‘No Ordinary Type’, NGS are developing a wide range of bespoke fonts taken from the originals and reproduced faithfully by hand.
These include the true-cut NGS renderings of original restored type below.
NGS FONTS have Grown to include:
- Caslon Bold extended,
- Baskerville Restored,
- Bodoni Parmese,
- Boston,
- Brick Lane,
- Edward Johnston,
- Fastscript,
- Manston,
- Molto,
- Poplar Bold,
- Soho Bold,
- Truecut Gill Sans,
- Trajan Restored Truecut.
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Edinburgh’s famous Bennett’s Bar doorway threashold features Johnston ‘Edinburgh’ original type example. Look up and remember to look down for constant inspiration!!
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Wayfinding signage in ‘NGS Baskerville’ at The City of London Club hotel suite.
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The truecut NGS Johnston Highbury font.
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NGS ‘Molto bold’ font inspired by Italian foundry and London Transport poster designs.
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NGS Soho bold based on the san serif ‘block’ lettering found around Berwick and Wardour St.
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NGS Johnston Highbury.
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Article
Inside the world of the Caslon Foundry, Chiswell St
By the Gentle author
Chiswell St is a canyon lined with glass and steel buildings leading from Moorgate to the Barbican today, yet once this was the centre of printing in the City of London. The foundry established by William Caslon in 1737, Britain’s most celebrated type designer, stood here until 1937. For more than two centuries, Caslon was the default typeface for printing in the English language and when the Americans wanted to make their Declaration of Independence and publish their Constitution, they imported type from the Caslon Foundry in Chiswell St to do it.
St. Brides Printing heritage
These historic photographs from St Bride Printing Library, taken in 1902 upon the occasion of the opening of the new Caslon factory in Hackney Wick, record both the final decades of the unchanged work of traditional type-founding, as well as the mechanisation of the process that would eventually lead to the industry being swept away by the end of the century.
22/23 Chiswell St with Caslon’s delivery van outside the foundry
The Directors’ Room with portraits of William Caslon and Elizabeth Caslon
Sydney Caslon Smith in his office
Clerks’ office, 15th November 1902. A woman sits at her typewriter in the centre of the office.
Type store with fonts being made up in packets by women and boys working by candlelight
Another view of the type store with women making up packets of fonts.
Another view of the type store.
In the type store
A boy makes up a packet of fonts in the type store
Room of printers’ supplies including type cases, forme trolleys and electro cabinets
Another view of the printers’ supplies store
Printing office on an upper floor with pages of type specimens being set and printed on Albion and Imperial handpresses.
Packing department with crates labelled GER, GWR, LNWR, CALCUTTA, BOMBAY, and SYDNEY
New Caslon Letter Foundry at Rothbury Rd, Hackney Wick, 1902
Harold Arthur Caslon Smith at his rolltop desk in Hackney Wick with type specimens from 1780 on the wall, Friday 7th November, 1902.
Another view of the Casting Shop
Founting Shop, with women breaking up the type and a man dressing the type
Casting metal furniture
Boys at work in the Brass Rule Shop
Boys making packets of fonts in the Despatch Shop, with delivery van waiting outside the door
Machine shop on the top floor with a fly-press in the bottom left
Woodwork Shop
Brass Rule Shop, hand-planing the rules
Caretaker’s cottage with caretaker’s wife and the factory cat.
Photographs courtesy St Bride Printing Library
You may also like to read about
William Caslon, Letter Founder
Roger Pertwee, Manufacturing Stationer
Justin Knopp, Printer & Typographer
