Paul Shaw

From A [Arrighi] to Z [Zwart]—Inspirations and Influences

Now24 ✚

A kaleidoscopic collage of inscriptions, calligraphy, lettering, typefaces, signage, and typography that have inspired and influenced my work as a designer and my areas of interest as a design historian. The work is wide-ranging and eclectic. It includes Morris Fuller Benton, Cassandre, W.A. Dwiggins, Nicolete Gray, Rudolf Koch, Koloman Moser, Bartolomeo Sanvito, and Jan Tschichold.

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Biography

Interview ✚

Paul Shaw is a calligrapher, typographer, type designer, graphic designer, design historian, and type historian. He has taught most of those subjects for various New York City universities and art schools since 1980. He has also taught the history of type for California Rare Book School. Paul was a partner in LetterPerfect, one of the earliest digital type foundries. Since 1996 he has led or co-led twelve editions of the Legacy of Letters tours and workshops in Italy. For the Type Directors Club, TypeCon, and other organizations he has conducted lettering walks in eighteen American and Canadian cities. He is the author of Revival Type, Helvetica and the New York City Subway System; the co-author of Blackletter: Type and National Identity; and the editor of The Eternal Letter: Two Millennia of the Classical Roman Capital.