Bill Wyman Logo

Ruth Rowland works on the new Bill Wyman logo for his official web site.
Ruth says "The development stage included a range of hand rendered styles, from handwriting akin to his own signature to this wilder version of his name using a dry brush to create a distressed, edgy mark. Combined with the designer's bold background and retro photo, the lettering makes a powerful impact on the music legend's homepage."

Doctor Who Time Capsule

The box set

DVD cover

Ruth Rowland works on the lettering for the limited edition Fourth Doctor Time Capsule for the BBC.
This luxury product aimed at the dedicated fan, celebrates Tom Baker and the 50th Anniversary of the Dr Who TV series, with a limited run of 5,000. Ruth Says "The box itself is designed to look like a Gallifreyan artefact and with this in mind, I was asked to create both English and Gallifreyan lettering for the DVD covers. This involved some very enjoyable research, looking at stills from old Doctor Who episodes and discussing the appropriate feel and layout of the two different alphabets with the art director. Once printed the title had the added bonus of only being legible once seen through the coloured disc provided." (Watch the video). The box set is 'lovingly put together' and full of Tom Baker goodies.

Type Tasting

Ruth Rowland will be taking part in the Type Tasting Exhibition, run as part of the London Design Festival at the Victoria & Albert Museum. The exhibition and drop in workshops are ‘open to everyone with a love of letterforms’.

Ruth says “I submitted a piece of work for the exhibition, we had to choose a word that described London. I was drawn to the word 'expressive' as it reflects what I love most about London - its dynamic, ever-changing cultural scene. In addition, it's a term often used to describe the loose, gestural nature of much of my work. I like to experiment with mark making, tools can vary from the beautifully hand crafted ruling pen used here, to a piece of old stick from my mother's garden. Pens and brushes are the tools of my trade, I've been collecting them for years, I like the fact that each one has its own distinctive characteristics.”

If you’d like to see Ruth in action, the workshops take place on 14th and 15th September. Go here for more information.

Ruth Rowland at the Scrapbook Live Event

Next Thursday 9th May sees Ruth Rowland showing work at the Scrapbook Live Event, Griffin Gallery, London, organised by ourselves! Ruth says " I have my pens, brushes and inks primed for some pretty wild and loose demonstrating. Alongside the calligraphic work, I'll be showing some 3D letters created especially for the event, combining type with my own hand lettering in a variety of media. It promises to be an exciting evening with illustrators Miss Led, Jacqueline Bissett, Sarah Beetson and Gail Armstrong all demonstrating alongside me. In total, twenty one artists will be showing work and the evening will be hosted by journalist and writer Garrick Webster with sounds by DJ Dirty Freud." You can follow the event live on twitter at #ScrapbookLive.

Mathematics Reform

Harvard Graduate School of Education asked Ruth Rowland to contribute to their Winter issue of Ed. Magazine. The result is this series of illustrations for the cover, a double page spread and a half page illustration for an article about mathematics reform in the USA.
Ruth says "I enjoyed combining chalkboard with squared paper backgrounds, numerals and equations to illustrate the piece. The design team's simple but witty idea for the cover, a pseudo-math equation, was carefully rendered to read both as an equation and the subject of the article. Inside the magazine, I retained the simple colour palette to keep the more complex illustrations eye-catching and legible.

Simple Minds

Ruth Rowland successfully uses her skills on this promotion for the Simple Minds upcoming tour.

She says "This three dimensional bust was created for the Simple Minds' The Greatest Hits Tour this April. I was commissioned to develop the lettering, working with a range of different marker pens, then scanning and fitting the script to a photo of the head. It was built up gradually until the final image was approved. It's surprisingly tricky to keep the lettering looking raw and not overworked - this vernacular lettering is influenced more by Outsider Art and hand drawn ephemeral signage than by traditional calligraphy. The designer sent over images of the scrawled graffiti on Jim Morrison's grave and the Abbey Road sign as the inspiration for the piece - the fumes from the markers probably helped a little too....
there are also plans to use it on the related album which has yet to be released."

SPLC

Ruth Rowland creates a typographic card for the Southern Poverty Law Center.

SPLC is a nonprofit civil rights organization dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of society. Ruth was asked to illustrate a card to be sent out to donors as a sign of SPLC's appreciation using a quote that fits with their message of justice and tolerance. Ruth has produced a purely typographic solution with this Anatole France quote, 'aiming to give the words the right tone and emphasis'. She says "I've worked for the design team at SPLC on several occasions so it was a pleasure to be asked to work on this holiday card. They have, by all accounts, a very impressive donor list which (despite my efforts!) they're not allowed to disclose!"

Which? Lettering

Ruth Rowland was delighted to be asked to create the cover lettering for the latest issue of Which? Magazine. It features an article about energy tariffs and how few people understand them. Ruth says "This illustrative piece uses different styles, weights and sizes of lettering to indicate the different answers given and the general confusion on the subject."