For the first time ever, Sheridan College is hosting The Alcuin Awards Exhibit, now on display in the Library Learning Commons at the Trafalgar Campus.
Brought to Sheridan through a partnership between The Sheridan Typographic Hub and Alcuin Society, this is a national competition that showcases and celebrates typography and fine book design.
Typography is letterpress printing, or the style, arrangement, or appearance of typeset matter.
With the rise of digital technology, it has become a common perception that typography is antiquated. However, Renee Alleyn, a Professor at York and Sheridan for Program in Design says,
“Typography is arguably more relevant today than it has ever been. Through digital technology, the average person interacts with digital typography at every stage of their day: from using their smartphones, watches, and internet-enabled appliances, to consulting info screens while riding transit, looking at the digital display in their car, checking the wayfinding kiosk at a mall, and spending their workday in front of a variety of screens. All these digital interfaces contain a hyper-abundance of typography.”
The Alcuin Society’s 37th annual Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada has on display 35 winning titles spanning across nine categories including non-fiction, comics and illustrated prose.
Some of the works being featured include:
- Split Tooth, author Tanya Tagaq, designer Jennifer Griffiths
- Vi, author Kim Thúy, designer CS Richardson
- Lure, author Ned Bell and Valerie Howes, designer Jessica Sullivan
- Les platanes d’Istanbul, author Tassia Trifiatis-Tezgel, designer Lea Berger
- White as Milk, Red as Blood: The Forgotten Fairytales of Franz Xaver von Schönwerth, author Franz Xaver von Schönwerth, designer Jennifer Lum
- Feast of Fields, author and designer Sean Karemaker
- Dirty Plotte: The Complete Julie Doucet, author Julie Doucet, designer Julie Doucet & Tracy Hurren
And more.
Some of the books on display at the Trafalgar Campus
The exhibit is on now until Friday, December 13th and is free to check out. Just head to The Library Learning Commons and view the fine works of typography blended with design to create visually stunning books.