Johnston's Underground Type. This item is unavailable.Johnston's Underground Type

In 1916, when it appeared on posters of the London Underground railway for the first time, Johnston Sans was recognised as an artefact of vitality and integrity. These were qualities which a few connoisseurs had already been privileged to see in the privately-commissioned calligraphy of its designer Edward Johnston; qualities which had, otherwise, rarely been seen in public, and were not usually to be associated with type design.

Johnston Sans was the first typeface to have been designed for day-to-day use by a leading artist-craftsman. It was seen as iconic by the younger generation of typographic designers and craftsmen.

Justin Howes shows how Johnston's type emerged from his calligraphy at a critical moment for an Arts and Crafts Movement becoming increasingly engaged with the problems of industrial design. Johnston's Underground Type is the first book to document Johnston's work for London Transport in detail. His other sans serif type designs for London Transport are discussed, and include the condensed Omnibus alphabets and a bold version of Johnston Sans.

Also reproduced, for the first time, are little-known designs for silver medallions presented to the Underground's best kept stations, and a selection of his bullseye designs for London Transport.

Dr Timothy S. Benson is the UK's leading expert on political cartoons and owns the world's largest website for original political cartoons wwwpoliticalcartoon.co.uk