BLAG Events this autumn straddle the globe, with demonstrations and talks from folks in Brazil, Japan, the UK, and USA. And that's all in addition to the first ever BLAG Meet where you can meet some of the people from Issue 03.

Read on for more details, and a digest of other workshops, Letterheads, exhibitions, and events.

BLAG Chat: Brazil's Letter Openers

Saturday, 23 September at 17:00 GMT

Designers and typography researchers Fátima Finizola and Fernanda Martins share their respective projects documenting and celebrating the work of Brazil's abridores de letras (letter openers, or sign painters). (There's a review of Fernanda's book in Issue 02 of BLAG.)

Info & Tickets

BLAG Meet: Inside Issue 03

Saturday, 7 October from 16:00 GMT

Meet the contributors from Issue 03 of BLAG across a series of talks, interviews, demonstrations, and more.

Info & Tickets

BLAG Demo: Sign Painters Do It in One Stroke

Friday, 10 November at 21:00 GMT

Learn what goes into painting well-formed one-stroke letters in this conversational demonstration with Kenji Nakayama and Peter Liedberg.

Tickets are discounted for BLAG members. Sign up here to access this benefit.

Info & Tickets

BLAG Demo: Roses are Red: A Narrowboat Tradition

Thursday, 30 November at 19:00 GMT

Learn how to paint the traditional roses used on British narrowboats, and about the role they play in this decorative artform, with Ginny Barlow.

Tickets are discounted for BLAG members. Sign up here to access this benefit.

Info & Tickets

Letterheads Meets

Benelux Letterheads, 8–10 September

I'm excited to have my ticket booked for this event in Brussels, 8–10 September, and there's an early bird discount valid until 8 August. If you've never been to a Letterheads meet before, then these bl.ag online articles should whet the appetite.

Info & Tickets

Later in the year, there are also meets in Christchurch, New Zealand, and Sydney, Australia.

More Online Events

All the BLAG Events above are hosted online, and it's good to see other talks, workshops, and conferences making use of this medium.

Neon Speaks is back in September, blending online activities with its in-person programme. And parts of the Society of Gilders' Global Gilding Symposium in October will be also hosted online.

The Kernference, 1–3 November

November sees the return of the Kernference, and I'm participating this year in a panel discussion on publishing. Early bird tickets (code EARLYBIRD) are available until 13 August, and this affiliate link gives me a little kickback if you sign up.

Also look out for the Lettering to Font Workshop with Francis Chouquet, and a three-part class from Pieter Snijders on Handpainted Lettering, both in September and online.

Opening and Closing

The brand new Ohnami Gallery in Los Angeles has a group sign painting show on 3 August, with private viewings available by appointment across the rest of the month.

For those able to reach Palm Springs, California, this exhibition on Mexican Graphic Design opens on 12 August and includes some sign painting elements. (There's more from Mexico in Bryan Yonki's bl.ag online article, and the photography of Alex Kurunis in BLAG 02.)

Also opening in August is Brushstrokes to Brands in London, while the following exhibitions all close in September, so catch them while you can: Give Me a Sign: The Language of Symbols in New York; Signs of the Seaside in Ditchling Sussex (read more here); Paula Scher: Type is Image in Munich.

Workshops Worldwide

The event listings page has links to various rolling workshop programmes around the world, so keep an eye on that if there's nothing immediately available in your area.

Sign Painting

In Los Angeles, there are classes in August with John King and Smart Alex Signs. It's also one of the stops on Mike Meyer's west coast tour which continues into September.

Elsewhere, there are sign painting workshops scheduled in: Glasgow; Huddersfield; Portland, Oregon; and White Waltham.

Other Classes

Cheryl McLean is teaching a series of Blackboard Art workshops in August with dates in Paris, Berlin, and Lucerne.

Cut It Out, 12 August

In San Francisco you can cut, bend, and fold paper to transform the alphabet from 2D to 3D in this short Cut It Out workshop with Dorothy Yuki, or go on a Letter Quest with Kelcey Gray.

And, if you want a longer period of study, then the European Lettering Institute in Bruges, Belgium, is currently accepting registrations for its intensive programmes on Lettering Fundamentals and Lettering Expertise (both with online options), alongside some shorter workshops.

Thank You

Thank you for reading, I hope to see you at one of these events soon. Please get in touch if you're hosting something that I should add to the event listings.

All good things, Sam

bl.ag / sam@bl.ag / @betterletters

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