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Left to right: Steve Matteson (Ascender Corporation), Tom Rickner (Ascender Corporation), Michelle Perham (Microsoft), Chuck Bigelow (RIT)

On October 28th, 2009 a panel of typographic experts gathered to impart the wisdom they have gathered over years in the typography industry.

Led by Charles Bigelow, typography professor in the School of Print Media and a co-creator of the Lucida fonts, the panel discussed the paths their careers followed leading them to the high-ranking typography positions in which they currently reside.

All three of the panel members attended RIT and graduated from the School of Print Media. Steve Matteson and Tom Rickner currently operate Ascender Corporation as Type Design Diriector and Type Designer and Font Producer respectively. Ascender Corporation has been contracted by major corporations like Google, Microsoft, Apple and designed the typefaces used in the Microsoft Zune player as well as the Android G2 Google phone.

Michelle Perham currently works for Microsoft Typography Group as a project manager and oversees international type design for all Microsoft products including the recent Windows 7. Her group currently has over 250 different fonts with more foreign fonts than latin fonts. According to Perham, less than 10% of world computers running Microsoft are using latin fonts.

The panel discussion covered a wide range of typographic topics including the increase in display fonts and the decrease in newspapers. According to Charles Bigelow, as the display technology and “hinting” of fonts become more refined, people are more comfortable reading off of a display. There is a linear relationship between this refinement and the demise of the newspaper industry.

A major focus of this panel discussion was job opportunities in the world of typography and design. The panel all seemed to agree that you have to follow the aspect of your education that held your attention the most no matter if it was your core focus of study. Chuck Bigelow has a degree in Anthropology and Michelle Perham has a degree in Photography, both took a type class and have based their careers around this particular facet of their education.

In addition to following your passion, the panelists from Ascender discussed the importance of hand drawing and the ability to have a strong grasp on the tools needed for type design before considering entering the field. A strong understanding of type was stressed as well as the need to practice with font revivals before attempting to put a person’s own work onto the screen.

If one thing was clear in this discussion it is that type is in high demand.

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RIT recently held its annual Brick City Homecoming & Family Weekend on October 9-11. The weekend’s events attracted thousands of students, parents, alumni, and guests from around the world.

Homecoming weekend kicked off Friday morning with the CIAS Golf Tournament at 8:00am in Penfield. Later that evening, the Rochester Riverside Convention Center hosted the RIT President’s Alumni Ball. Attendees of the ball spoke with President Destler and enjoyed a fantastic three-course dinner. The event opened with an hors d’oeuvre reception, live music by an Elvis tribute artist, and casino games. The highlight of the night for many was the side-splitting performance by comedian Jim Gaffigan. Gaffigan is known for several Comedy Central specials, comedy albums, and roles in television and movies.

Wikipedia founder and philanthropist Jimmy Wales was the 2009 Horton Distinguished Speaker. As a leading Internet entrepreneur, Wales was named one of the 100 Most Influential People by Time Magazine. He spoke at the Gordon Field House on Saturday morning. The RIT Hockey team played in their first-ever homecoming hockey game on Saturday night at the Blue Cross Arena downtown. The Tigers battled the Colgate Red Raiders in their opening game, but could not edge out a win.

Sunday saw the closing of homecoming weekend. The day started off with a 5K Fun Run & Walk around campus, followed by a Bon Voyage Brunch at the RITz Sports Zone. Brick City Homecoming is the first community and family weekend event on campus this year, with Imagine RIT coming up in Spring quarter.

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Vimeo is one of the up and coming video sharing websites that is taking video production seriously. Vimeo is a step above YouTube and sites in a similar vein, in that the Vimeo staff expects quality videos from creative people in a respective community. Critique on videos are welcome, but comments must be relevant and on point. Videos must be original material and decent quality. Vimeo is trying to bring a standard to videos on the Internet that has diminished in the age of YouTube.

With this in mind, SPMetc has joined the ranks of Vimeo users. You can come check us out at http://vimeo.com/user2446807. We will be posting videos from past events as well as any we acquire from here on out. You can currently watch videos about the Ink Chemistry and Formulation Lab and the Open Publishing Guide. More videos will be up soon, so keep your eyes open for a more visual look at the School of Print Media.

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Signatures Literary and Art Magazine celebrated its 25^th reunion at Lovin’ Cup during Brick City weekend. The event was open to everyone, be it a contributor to the magazine or a lover of poetry and music. It attracted a wide range of audience–alumni staff of the magazine made an appearance as well as professors and students alike.  Everyone came to appreciate art, performed and in the open.

The party kicked off with Henry Kearse playing on the piano while everyone settled down. Signatures advisors Professor John Roche, Professor Vincent Golphin and managing editor Sarai Oviedo then welcomed everyone to the event.

Rob Livolsi was the first performer. A singer/songwriter, Livolsi played a few songs on the piano housed in Lovin’ Cup.He was followed with an acoustic set by Pia Mater, a local favorite. Playing for a half hour, Pia Mater had a good set, especially considering it was there first acoustic performance ever in public.

Poetry had its chance to shine as well, with performances from Garrete McMahon, Danielle Gatti, Zachary Smith, Andy Knight, Whitney Gratton, Sarai Oviedo and John Roche.  The content ranged from original poetry, to a performance skit, to readings from past Signatures issues. There was also time for an open mike, which some people took advantage of.

Pia Matter then came out for another short acoustic set, finishing the activities for the event. With closing remarks from John Roche, the party came to a close. Alumni, contributors, and editors all mingled and took copies of the magazine, ending the celebration of Signatures 25 year run. By the look of it, there is no slowing down for Signatures anytime soon.

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