|
|
1 |
Thomas, Martyn. Lane John A. Rogers, Anne. Harry Carter, Typographer. A Tribute to an Unsung English Typographer, by Martyn Thomas, John a Lane, and Anne Rogers.
The Old School Press 2005 Limited Edition Hardcover Fine
170 copies are case-bound in green cloth, with a dust-wrapper of green Hahnemühle Bugra Bütten carrying a line-drawing portrait of Carter by John Watts.
The book combines a 50pp biographical sketch by Martyn Thomas and Anne Rogers with a comprehensive bibliography of Carter's published work originally compiled by John Lane, including books, articles, reviews, and lectures, as well as reviews of his work by others. 240 copies have been printed letterpress, uniformly with Stanley Morison & 'John Fell'. Each copy of the book contains eleven photographs of Carter through his lifetime, a sample of the pattern paper he designed for Curwen, a self-portrait when aged 13, a triple wood-engraving portrait of him by George Buday, and a printed sample of his 'Emerald' Bible type. 128pp.
Harry Carter was one of the foremost typographers of the twentieth century, and one of the least celebrated. Sir Francis Meynell described him as 'one of the least-known best-known men in the world of books. He has chosen nearly always to be an accompanist, rather than the soloist he could be.' Carter was a meticulous scholar. Stanley Morison famously said of him 'The man's a pedant! The man's a pedant! ', but Morison's great book John Fell carries the acknowledgement 'with the assistance of Harry Carter' on the title page, and in his preface Morison says that Carter 'carried unflinchingly the massive burden of editorial drudgery'. In reality, Morison would never have completed John Fell without Carter's deep knowledge of ancient types, his unerring eye for detail, and his passion for accuracy.
Carter's career spanned the Monotype Works, the Kynoch and Nonesuch Presses, H. M. S. O, and the University Press, Oxford. His designs ranged from a Curwen pattern paper, to the lettering for the route blinds on London buses, Monotype Russian Baskerville, a Hebrew type, and a new Bible face for O. U. P. His main legacy, however, lies in his many publications. Carter's breadth of work was remarkable. His translation of Fournier on Typefounding is the standard work, as is his translation of Herodotus for the Limited Editions Club. But it is his many books and articles on type design and type history that are especially valuable to typographers and lovers of fine printing today.
Price:
80.00 GBP
|
