This year has been a reminder to tend to the little spaces on the internet I call my own with more care, starting with https://indiastreetlettering.com/.
I set up this website years ago to collect photographs I take of street lettering around the country, but Iโve been terrible at keeping it up-to-date. That changes now. And if I can keep myself motivated, Iโll share a picture from it here every week ๐ค๐ผ
Nastaliq, Devanagari and Latin come together on this sign for a traditional medicine centre, where space is expertly carved out for each script without cramping their styles.
๐ Shastri Market, Amritsar (Punjab)
๐
December 2017
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/house-of-surgery/
An Art Deco postcard from Mumbai ๐
๐ Oval Maidan, Mumbai (Maharashtra)
๐
May 2016
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/queens-court/
One of the things I miss about living in Bangalore is the old neon signs on MG Road, many decrepit now. This one is a favourite: from the swash of the โVโ to pairing the narrow script with the squarish sans, and the ampersand to the subtly similar โkโ in both styles.
๐ MG Road, Bangalore (Karnataka)
๐
October 2019
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/vijayalakshmi-silks-sarees/
An unexpected bit of Cyrillic in the heart of Delhi on this bilingual plaque marking the statue of Russian poet, Aleksandr Pushkin. Over the years, the bloated Devanagari เคถ in this sign has gone from pet peeve to something I have a soft spot for.
๐ Mandi House, Delhi
๐
November 2018
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/alekasandr-pushkins-statue/
This hand-painted sign is so clever to use the eyes usually associated with the goddess Kali to create the chandra bindu in the word เคฎเคพเค (Hindi for mother). The flourishes are not a bad touch either.
๐ Swaroop Nagar, Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
January 2019
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/maa/
On every trip to Ahmedabad, I am struck by how easily the Gujarati script is moulded into to geometric forms, sometimes abstract enough to stump me and my novice reading skills. Last time around, I noticed this sign for a cycle repair shop that I loved: its compact shapes, gently curved strokes and undulating baseline.
๐ Shahpur, Ahmedabad (Gujarat)
๐
December 2018
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/naveen-repairing-centre/
Go for the birds, stay for the hand-painted letters! If I was responsible for getting people to Okhla Bird Sanctuary, thatโs what Iโd be telling them.
Take this welcome sign for instance, well-intentioned but lovingly crooked. The เคง in the เคฆเฅเคง conjunct is beyond tiny and my favourite bit: the shrike has pushed the เฅ matra off the stem in the เคนเฅ.
๐ Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Noida (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
February 2022
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/okhla-bird-sanctuary/
#IndiaStreetLettering #Noida #Handpainted #OkhlaBirdSanctuary
That loopy cursive has my heart!
๐ Car Street, Bangalore (Karnataka)
๐
August 2016
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/champaka-distributors/
These two signs for the same building are in gold, on ground-level, and most importantly, completely and utterly dismissive of visually matching Devanagari and Latin scripts. I wrote a little bit about them in my newsletter https://mailchi.mp/05e0957f4a95/typographic-eye3-cp-type-tour a few months ago.
๐ Connaught Place, Delhi
๐
November 2019
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/indra-palace/ + https://indiastreetlettering.com/indra-palace-2/
When I visited Chennai five years ago, I spent a morning photographing signs for hardware stores in George Town. Among them was this one for Quality Machine Tools, which featured the most delicious, high-contrast Tamil lettering.
๐ George Town, Chennai
๐
March 2018
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/quality-machine-tools/
Gotta love the sign for a century and a half old temple, which features three scripts โ Devanagari, Latin and Nastaliq โ and a suggestion, perhaps, of a more syncretic time.
I donโt think I recall the word โpanditโ being abbreviated with a raised โTโ ever before.
๐ Kankhal, Haridwar (Uttarakhand)
๐
February 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/temple-of-ganga-and-bhagirath/
#IndiaStreetLettering #Devanagari #Nastaliq #Latin #Haridwar
I am always drawn to signs that turn up on homes, like this one warning visitors and burglars of the resident canine. The illustration of the agitated dog and the flamboyant โWโ are such nice touches.
๐ Defence Colony, Bangalore (Karnataka)
๐
February 2016
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/beware-of-dogs/
Iโve been fascinated with the Modi Flour Mills building and the letters on its faรงade for as long as I can remember. Growing up, it was the location for many a detective story I concocted.
I finally got some images of its signs last week. Must go back for more on a sunnier day, but until then, please enjoy these larger than life wood letters in Devanagari and Latin โ pigeons for scale ๐คญ
๐ Okhla, Delhi
๐
August 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/modi-flour-mills/
It wouldnโt be a type walk https://bangaloreinternationalcentre.org/event/men-of-faith-letters-of-commerce/ if I didnโt notice a sign for the first time while showing folks around a neighbourhood where Iโve rambled so much.
Hidden in an alley off MG Road is this beautiful sign. It has sent me down a rabbit hole trying to learn more about Yusuf Sait, who was I believe was the royal tailor to the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysuru.
๐ MG Road, Bangalore (Karnataka)
๐
June 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/gulzaray-yoosoofi/
This mural celebrating Rabindranath Tagore on the wall of the Bengalee Associationโs building in Bangalore is a treat, especially for its cursive Bangla letterforms.
๐ Ulsoor, Bangalore (Karnataka)
๐
September 2019
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/bengalee-association/
I am particularly fond of this building and its signs, which also include a trilingual set spelling out Bengalee Association in Kannada, Bangla and English.
A few years ago, I drew an homage to that sign for a postcard that Bangaloreโs very own Champaca Books https://champaca.in/ sent to their book box subscribers https://indiastreetlettering.com/bengalee-association-for-champaca-books/.
Champaca is an independent bookstore, based in Bangalore. A women-owned and run space, we carefully curate our selection to highlight lesser-known voices, publishers and regions. Our online store ships books all across India. Buy our books online!
Halloween ๐ป has come early to India Street Lettering because it is awash with pictures from the Nishatganj Cemetery ๐ชฆ in Lucknow.
๐ Nishatganj Cemetery, Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
September 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/nishatganj-cemetery/
#IndiaStreetLettering #Lucknow #NishatganjCemetery #GravestoneTypography
When in Haridwar earlier this year, I photographed a collection of signs that all featured the conjunct เคถเฅเคฐ (as part of the word เคถเฅเคฐเฅ) in an effort to document the myriad ways in which sign makers interpreted the same shape in different styles and materials. These and other signs feature in my latest newsletter https://mailchi.mp/matratype/typographic-eye-10-karthik-malli-interview about script standardisation.
๐ Kankhal & Mayapur, Haridwar (Uttarakhand)
๐
February 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/%E0%A4%B6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0-collection/
I am all for this marriage of Mirza Ghalib with art deco in the sign for a cultural institute in Delhi that celebrates the famed poetโs work and legacy.
๐ Nizamuddin West, New Delhi
๐
November 2018
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/ghalib-academy/
#IndiaStreetLettering #Latin #Delhi #Ghalib #GhalibAcademy #ArtDeco
Signs on government buildings are usually rather insipid, and so I was pleasantly surprised to see this delightful sign for Bapu Bhawan เคฌเคพเคชเฅ เคญเคตเคจ on the state secretariat in Lucknow.
I love its complete lack of curves and large open knots: there is something so rigid yet playful about it.
๐ Hazratganj, Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
September 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/bapu-bhawan/
Lucknow sure knows how to party ๐บ๐ผ I was mesmerised by this DJ/band tempo and the excellent hand-painted letters on it.
๐ Lalbagh, Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
September 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/ram-dj-band/
Long time, no #IndiaStreetLettering. Todayโs spotlight is on this excellent sign for a DTP shop in Kolkata. I would trust a print shop with such impeccable taste, wouldnโt you?
๐ Sahitya Parishad Street, Kolkata (West Bengal)
๐
December 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/art-life/
A street lined with hardware stores in Kolkata. The extra, extra wide Bengali on the K. C. Mookerji sign is just fantastic โฅ๏ธ
๐ Nirmal Chandra Street, Kolkata (West Bengal)
๐
December 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/k-c-mookerji-son/
I had long wanted to go see this sign for Tipografia Sadananda in Panjim, and I finally made it last year.
It is a beautiful design, whether you look at the dots on the โiโ, or the sinuous, headline-less Devanagari.
The shop was closed when I visited, but a Government Gazette from 1967 tells me that it had been around in the early 60s, with proprietors Dattaram and Vinaeca Vamon Naik.
๐ Altinho, Panjim (Goa)
๐
November 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/tipografia-sadananda/
More from Panjim โฌ๏ธ
One establishment, but two signs in two languages, albeit in one script.
How would you even describe the style on the English sign?
๐ Altinho, Panjim (Goa)
๐
November 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/g-x-verleker-sons-jewellers/ + https://indiastreetlettering.com/g-x-verlecar-joalharia/
Several parts of India are reeling under a devastating heatwave. Temperatures where I live, for instance, are set to touch 47ยฐC today ๐ฅต This sign for an ice-cream shop in Lucknow feels most apt to share.
๐ Lalbagh, Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
๐
September 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/india-ice-cream/
A small collection of signs from Kolkata for names folks have given their homes. I love how the letterforms have been poured into containers of different shapes and have adapted their forms: a reminder that Indic scripts are more flexible and playful than what most fonts would have us believe.
๐ Chandni Chowk, Kolkata (West Bengal)
๐
December 2023
๐ https://indiastreetlettering.com/tag/residence/
@matratype nice.
To my eyes:
- the second one in the top row looks best
- the first one in the bottom row looks like a social experiment
Subjective of course.
@smurthys ๐
The second one in the top row is quite nice, but the effect is somewhat ruined for me because of the overhanging เฅ matra.
My favourites are the first one in the top row, and the second in the second.
The weirdest: the last เคถเฅเคฐ!
@matratype That dog looks like it could be quite fun to play with!
Here's one that's a little more menacing from Kratie, Cambodia ๐ฎ
The Khmer script reads, "Beware of the Dog".
There are a few more of these in my book, Hand-Painted Signs of Kratie: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/kratie
Hand-Painted Signs of Kratie by Sam Roberts documents the painted signs in a small town in Cambodia, including the history of the signs and the craft itself.
@matratype They are probably from the same original reference.
When I studied some of the barber shop signs in Kratie, the same customer kept appearing in the pictorialsโthe sign painter just reused the same source material for different clients!
@nicksherman @matratype I'll add these pictorials from painted shopfronts in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam.
Some of the full fascias are on this page: https://bl.ag/painted-signs-in-vietnam/
#signpainting #machinery #pictorial #illustration #shopfront #Vietnam #MekongDelta
@blag @nicksherman ๐คฉ
A couple of months ago there was a small exhibition in Delhi that put together hand painted signs from India and the Dominican Republic, and showcased illustrations for lots of different product types.
It has made me quite curious to see where else in the world these sort of signs make an appearance, and so Iโm especially delighted to see the Vietnam photographs. Thanks Sam!
@matratype @nicksherman I have some spreads in my book, Hand-Painted Signs of Kratie, that are very similar to those arrays.
(Kratie is a provincial capital in north-east Cambodia, located on the Mekong river.)
There is a free download of the ebook available here: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/kratie. That page also has a Khmer translation of the full text.
#kratie #cambodia #signs #signpainting #signwriting #pictorial #illustration
Hand-Painted Signs of Kratie by Sam Roberts documents the painted signs in a small town in Cambodia, including the history of the signs and the craft itself.
Pooja Saxena
Max Iorsh
Sean Murthy
Sam at BLAG
Andrew
Shankar
Nick Sherman
Namrata Goyal