Category: ultrapink

Punk as footnote

The folks as Pavement Licker zine and Verdant Brewing have just announced a packaging collaboration — a limited set of beer cans featuring artwork taken from the zine’s archives. The really cool bit is that one of the cans features a piece I did for Pavement Licker #9 — a composition of clip art and Letraset typesetting I tinkered with for Pink Mince #9 — Punk Mince — but never used.

Verdant Brewing 1Verdant Brewing cans

The cans (all of them, not just mine) look great, but photos make it hard to see the full image that wraps around the can. Here is my “Punk as fuck” art, as shown in Pavement Licker in all its glory:

Punk as Fuck

In true zine-like cut-and-paste spirit, though, the pieces each have a background of their own.

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Letraset: The DIY Typography Revolution

LETRASET: The DIY Typography Revolution

Aaaargh! Pink Mince and some of the source material for the “Punk Mince” and “The Stroke” issues is featured in this incredible exhibition about Letraset at the Sheffield Institute of Arts and I want to see it SO MUCH. The exhibition is connected to Letraset: The DIY Typography Revolution, the fantastic book about Letraset and its history that was published this year, which included an interview with me, some photos of Pink Mince, and lots of photos of items form my collection of Letraset sheets, ephemera, and paraphernalia.

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Learning from Letraset

“Learning from Letraset”, a talk I gave at Cooper Union on February 22, 2016, as part of Type@Cooper’s Herb Lublin Lecture Series

Letraset and other brands of rub-down type literally put typography in the hands of the people. Rub-down type made it possible for students, professionals, and everyone else to design with real typefaces, without needing professional typesetting services. A cheap and easy way to experiment with typography and other graphic elements, Letraset put a lot of care into making type easy to use well, but it also resulted in a lot of ways to use type badly, but with interesting results. With some care and attention, however, it was a great way to develop an eye for typography.

This talk was a look at Letraset’s type and other graphic supplies, showing how they put the tools of professional design into everyday hands. It also looked at how people had to improvise with Letraset, and made the most of the materials at hand.

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I have a face for radio

Paper Cuts

Like this site, Pink Mince is another side project that’s been going for so long that its own history is part of why I can’t bring myself to call it quits. I may publish sporadically, but I’m really proud of the eleven issues (not to mention the Minis, the merch, and the far-more-active Tumblr moodboard) I’ve produced across the last 6 years or so.

Despite the body of work, it’s rare for a zine get much of a reach, so I don’t often get to talk much about what the overall project has been about over the years. Happily, book artist Christopher Kardambikis invited me for an interview on Paper Cuts, an online radio show he hosts, where he talks to zine makers and other DIY publishers about the things they do. It was great to ramble on for a bit, and finally explain what I mean when I say that Pink Mince isn’t just a gay zine, but is also a showcase for contemporary typeface design and vintage lettering that features pictures of dudes.

Sparky in Vienna

(That’s me sneaking a discussion of Pink Mince into a talk on Letraset I was giving in Vienna.)

Two great independent magazines

I generally don’t talk about Pink Mince when I’m doing things related to my day job, but I threw in a handful of visual references to accompany an interview in the latest issue of 8 Faces magazine. (If you like or love typography, then you really should check out 8 Faces.)

You can order 8 Faces here. And, of course, you can order Pink Mince here. You can also buy that t-shirt (and others) at the Pink Mince Zazzle shop.


The best review of Punk Mince yet

“I loved reading your zine. Of all the material I collected, yours was among the sharpest, most-cohesive and had a genuine voice (sharp and unpretentious and honest and hip at the same time). You did something that obviously took work, but kind of has this effortless air to it which is, I suppose, how things are deemed hip. In any case, I liked reading it and wanted to tell you I’m really glad you didn’t write about painting your nails and wanting to kill yourself, because, incidentally, a lot of people did.”

See for yourself.

Live from New York: It’s Pink Mince #8

Pink Mince 8

If you haven’t already, you should grab a copy of the new Pink Mince #8. And it’s not just me who thinks so:

“totally fantastic, one of the best yet. Will have to book a ticket to NY!”

“Best issue yet.”

“Don’t you just LOVE when a new Pink Mince arrives …? Spesh when you’re in it! Beautiful work once again”

“Loving the new issue….entertaining and informative. What more could a man want?”

“Pink Mince. What can I say. I love it!”

“Page 16, with a beard, sitting against a tree. Are you fricking kidding me …? Where the hell was I in 1976 …?”

Bear Parade

Pink Mince 5

Pink Mince #5, obvs. All the Tumblr attention isn’t that much of a surprise (there was a certain shameless pandering to my art direction for that article), but I wish all the visibility would lead to a few more sales. It’s hard running a small press, yo.

But I am delighted to see my associate Mr Moore’s exquisite Leyton getting a little extra attention as a result of that image. Maybe super-black typefaces with a dash of swing will become the rage of the bear community! That’s why I made the {BEAR HUG!} t-shirt, just in case.

Bear Hug