Fontalicious
So for several months I’ve been up to my ascender in ligatures….What does that mean?
I’ve created the tuccicursive Font Foundry!
I’ve partnered up with Stuart Sandler of Font Diner and we have produced the first of the tuccicursive handwritten Font Foundry. It’s called Prosciutto!
Prosciutto is a completely hand-drawn typeface, and just like the Italian cured ham itself, it is a buttery mix of salty and sweet forms. Prosciutto combines some elements of my modern script and some of my primitive printing forms that together make a kind of modern-day folk movement.
This OpenType has many combinations available almost making a completely new style every time you combine the different families. There is also a set of extras with swashes that add a touch of organic spontaneous hand drawn flourishing.
The tuccicursive foundry is inspired by my expressive Italian-American Family. I have always used art and letters to describe my world, and am so happy to bring that work into the digital realm. Quite frankly, everyone in my family has beautiful, characteristic handwriting–you can always tell who is sending you a letter before opening the envelope. There’s no “secret” in our Secret Santas. My prized possessions have always been my families’ notes and letters. For me, there is a definitive spiritual connection between a person and their handwriting. It’s almost as moving as a photo of them, possibly, even more so. Ultimately, it feels very natural to design hand drawn typeface because I’ve honored it for so long.
Friends and colleagues have always complimented me on my handwriting and through the years I’ve been encouraged to ‘make a font’ out of my everyday handwriting. In the past, I may have even attempted to make one a few times with ‘over the counter font programs,’ but the technology seemed one step beyond my understanding. But that font idea had always remained in the back of my head. Now, working with a real programmer, making a real live font makes that old idea–brand new.
As a letterer and calligrapher, I am so encouraged by the love of ‘slow art’ in this otherwise modern, technological world. Folks seeking vinyl albums and handmade items makes me feel that the world is still appreciative of soul and value. 
Despite this, I am happy creating work that is meant for the digital world–it brings me joy that folks want everything from posters to invitations to have the feel and look of a human artist, that there is an appreciation and need for things that aren’t so modern after all.
Partnering with Stuart has been such a blessing. As a writer, I’ve always worked with directors and producers who bring out concepts in my writing I never knew where there. It’s a bit like unexpected gift giving. This relationship has the same feel, Stuart makes my letterforms seem new. He gives me my work back and it has an unexpected, thoroughly gift-wrapped feel to it. He is also so patient and generous with technical information and is always encouraging. I am so lucky that I work with someone who is not only a ‘sculptor’ in his own right, but someone who understands the fragility of every artist’s individual process.
Stuart owns Font Diner. Ironically, when I was a graphic artist at a post production house many years ago, I bought fonts from him! You never know who you are going to meet again in this world or spend time making swashes with. Stuart Sandler launched the Font Diner font foundry in 1996. Stuart also has a penchant for the past and honors craftsmanship. He is inspired by American popular culture of the 1930s–1960s and is focused on the preservation and revival of photolettered cold type with his acquisition of the Edwin Krauter Filmotype and Lettering, Inc. typeface libraries.
His reputation precedes him, he has created more than 800 original typefaces. So, when he tells me one of my lettering pieces is a FONT–I know he’s serious.
Stuart admires and understands the lure of handwritten fonts. He says, “It’s been wonderful to see the transition in recent years from formal to informal handwriting styles growing in popularity and I believe in part this is due to a return to humanizing design in an increasingly digital world. It gives people comfort and creates a deeper and immediate connectedness with the viewer that only handwriting fonts can offer.”
So keep your eye on tuccicursive Foundry for more handwritten fonts. And thank you for all your encouragement!
Let’s Eat!
tuccicursive.com 