All you need to know about VolcanoType’s typographic workshop

The city on the Bosphorus – is famous for its countless minarets, magnificent palaces, colorful markets and traders, seagulls and stray cats. Istanbul is the only metropolis in the world that unites two continents. It is a trans-cultural mosaic, modern and contemporary in the way it links its rich past with our common future” writes the introductory text on VolcanoType’s typographic gathering that sounds quite amazing. Not just because Istanbul is all of the above and so much more.

“The contrasts are endless and inspiring: traditional crafts collide with a young and blossoming art and design scene, which is slowly changing the face and image of the city. With an average temperature of comfortable 17 degrees in November, the first VolcanoType workshop will take place in Istanbul, and invites every- body interested in type design to participate and enjoy the wonderful city!” Therefore, this is everything you need to know before meeting other explorers of the letterform in one of the most interesting cities of the world.

What is it about?
VolcanoType workshops are intense 3-day workshops held around the world by a local and guest type designer. Everybody can attend – beginners will learn how to design typefaces, intermediate type designers can boost their skills. It’s all about the love of letters, so you do not need to achieve a professional career as a type designer afterwards.

In what way?
You will get to work on your type design skills in a 3-day-workshop and learn from a local and guest type designer in a vibrant environment. If you want to combine the excitement of worldwide travel with learning more about type, then this is made for you!

Still need to know more.
Besides attending an interesting workshop and learning more about type, the location and cultural context of typography is an important factor of the VolcanoType workshops, too. Walk through the streets and discover the uniqueness of the city, taste the local delicacies, watch the daily life and get inspired!

Sure, Istanbul is great...
This workshop aims to provide an opportunity for designers to explore in detail the process of typeface production. It comprises of lectures pertaining to the history of typefaces, demos on practical and technical skills, and one- to-one guidance by tutors Peter Brugger and Onur Yazıcıgil. It invites beginner level designers to explore the principles of type production, and intermediate to advanced designers to work on existing projects to further develop their typefaces for industry standards.

Now you’re talking
The workshop will focus on two broad categories: Display Typefaces and Text Typefaces. Among these, various sub-categories will be discussed and each attendee will work on their preferred category and style of typeface.

VolcanoType workshops will facilitate typeface design skills in a compact 3-day-workshop. The tutors are your personal contact persons during the whole time and will teach you how to sketch letters and avoid the most common mistakes. They will help you to take your sketches to a font editor and to work with it. The instructors help you understand how type works in response to your own creative output and give tips and suggestions in terms of letter shapes and the design process.

Who is welcome?
Anyone who is interested in type design with no need to have experience in this field. Graphic designers, illustrators, artists and calligraphers are all welcome to attend and maybe see type in a new way afterwards.

Ok, name the place and the time
November 20th (Friday), 21st (Saturday), 22nd (Sunday), 2015 from 10 am to 6 pm. Full day workshops break for lunch from 1 pm to 2:30 pm.

How many are we going to be?
We keep the instructor/student ratio super low, averaging 10 students per tutor. Languages All lectures will be held in English. The instructors also speak German and Turkish whilst each workshop is taught by professional type designers.

Ok, just a sec to grab my laptop, see you there.