Customer Reviews

Parallel Strokes

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This is a fascinating book about lettering, written by graphic designer Ian Lynam. It is a collection of interviews with 19 contemporary typeface designers, graffiti writers and lettering artists from around the world. The book was published in a limited edition of 1000 and is printed with a single color: burgundy on white paper. Along with an excellent essay by the author, it is full of interesting pictures to illustrate the text, all printed in burgundy. It is a brilliant inquiry into the history and development of lettering today. The book explores how lettering relates to, and has been influenced by graffiti, lettering and type design.This is a unique book for hardcore graffiti enthusiasts.

Let me start off by saying this book is great. A great concept, great interviews with many amazing writers, designers and typographers, and a great selection of photos. Anybody who is interested in graffiti, typography, graphic design, or anything like that will love having this book.

I only have a few complaints about the book. First off it's paperback and quite small, This means that when they have a photo that goes across two pages the center of the photo is all but lost, unless you want to bend your book backwards. One more thing is that it's printed in only one color, magenta. I know it's environmentally friendly and all, but I feel like it detracted from the quality of the photos. Instead of an intense splash of color, most of the photos of graffiti just look like pink mush. I would have paid 3 times the price for a version that was hardcover, full color, and a little larger.

Other than those few nitpicks, this is a great book, perfect for anybody interested in graffiti and graphic design. And limited to 1000 copies. So you can show it off in a couple of years when everybody wants it.