The writing’s on the Wall

Sign-writing is as old as civilisation with symbols and images painted on walls and doors outside ancient Chinese stores, Roman workshops, and Assyrian tombs. Carved into stone or simply painted in neat characters to convey the messages of the sandal-maker, the gladiator tutor, and the chariot repairer. Until the beginnings of the industrial revolution in the 19th century, those ancient skills remained the only way to make signs. With the advent of advanced printing, plastic engineering, and computer graphics, some might think that sign-writing would have gone out of fashion.



Busy, busy, busy

Sign-writer Mark Hill from Devon says reports of the death of sign-writing had been greatly exaggerated: “I’ve never been busier. Especially the type of sign-writing I do, painting directly onto painted walls and such like. A lot of the work I take on is sub-contracted from other companies who don’t have the in-house skills for hand drawn typefaces and using the medium of painting with a brush. It is a skill that takes years to perfect and so it’s not something that can just be picked up. Sign-writing is definitely on an upward curve.”



Hill says one-off signs hand-painted by a craftsman were in demand because they were unique and clients valued the signs more than something mass produced. One of the aspects of one-off jobs was that often hand painted signage was not always more expensive and on a one-off basis there could be no real difference in cost.



He explains: “People have looked at traditional sign-writing and realise how striking it is and with painting straight onto a wall for instance, customers realise how striking it is and how eye-catching it can be. You don’t have to fix a board up there, it’s permanent and unique.”



Wayne Osborne in West Sussex agreed that this form of sign-writing was proving to be popular and giving a new lease of life to the skills. One particular example was of a pub where he painted its name right across the front wall above the door. The pub had been earmarked for closure by the brewery in Hampshire but a group of residents decided to save the hostelry and kept it as a community asset. They decided they wanted it to have a traditional look to the front.



Osborne comments: “The rescuers of the Fox and Hounds at Denmead, Hampshire, who raised all the funds to save it from local subscribers, wanted the sign painted directly to the front wall to complete the re-birth of their much loved boozer, and I was more than happy to be part of it.”

Using a serif typeface in yellowy gold with a red drop shadow, and rendered in capital letters on a black background, Osborne created a stunning effect and one that most breweries would not have considered. It is the very uniqueness and the demands for individuality that appear to be the attractions for clients that keep the sign-writers in gainful employment.
 
Keeping the skills alive

Clearly there is a demand for sign-writing and across the country there are a score or more of specialist sign-writers who are kept busy with work, but they no longer service just their local business community, they have to travel to where the work is. But how will their skills be kept alive with no national scheme available for new apprentices to learn the trade?

“Sign-writing died a death a few years ago,” says Mark Hill, adding: “I went on a sign-writing course in Plymouth but there’s nothing like that there now. However, the suppliers of my equipment run lettering courses in London because of the popularity of it with lots of people who have taken up sign-writing. People are taking up sign-writing, not just as a business but often as a hobby. So I suppose in the future there may be more sign-writers, so perhaps I won’t be so busy then!”



Osborne runs courses in West Sussex for those hobbyists wanting to learn the trade. He says: “I am regularly contacted by individuals who want to learn more about hand lettering and the art and craft of signwriting. I am pleased to provide introductory workshops in traditional signwriting and have given practical tuition to beginners, hobbyists, schools groups and even a paint technician from Rolls-Royce motor cars. These are small, fun and informal day courses where groups or individuals can learn sign-writing skills that suit all ability levels.”

It appears that the main driving force in these new hobbyists and those wishing to break into the business is an interest in the craft side of the work. An eye for typography yes, a desire to learn a skill that appeared to be on the brink of extinction perhaps, but also an interest in the heritage of sign-writing. Which takes us back to its origins and the way a beautifully rendered sign complete with graphics, imagery and yes, art, can draw in a potential customer to a business.



A generation ago before wide-format, computers, and the availability of vinyl lettering, most sign-makers learnt the skills of the sign-writer as their introduction into the industry. Craig Brown of Signs Express was one such trainee. He says: “I started out as a traditional sign-writer and I still love the creative skill it involves and the heritage that the practice originates from. Of course, due to the increasing use of technology in the signage industry, traditional sign-writing has become a niche market with specific needs. Traditional sign-writing requires a huge amount of skill and patience, but ultimately it is not scalable in the way modern techniques have evolved. Usually traditional sign-writers have to make the decision to go down the commercial route and invest in modern technologies or make the lifestyle decision to continue catering to the niche market that has specific needs and fewer people that can cater to them.”

Traditionally speaking

Not all sign-writers, however, have made that decision and it appears there are plenty who find they still have full order books for their work. Osborne adds: “Modern sign-making methods are ideal to make a cheaper sign, more quickly but that does not mean a well-made traditional sign is prohibitively expensive (or I would not be as busy as I am). My customers find that the overall quality, fit and finish of a hand-crafted and hand sign-written traditional sign more than outweighs the small extra outlay and find their sign has a longer quality life.

O Factoid: It appears that the main driving force in these new hobbyists and those wishing to break into the business is an interest in the craft side of
the work. O

“Hand signwriting can be a quiet and solitary business and demands concentration. I do not mind an audience. In fact, working in the street for example invites constant comments but all my attention must really be upon the job.”



And there perhaps lies part of the appeal of the craft. Sign-writers are often solitary workers who do not need thousands of pounds worth of equipment; who build a business around a hand skill and a list of recommendations. They are the ultimate one-man/woman business. Working out-doors at times, getting around the country, and also working back in their studio—often a spare room or their garden shed. As for passing on the skills to another generation, well there is a whole new business there. Wayne Tansell of Sudbury runs courses on the subject, has written extensively on the topic, and has even made films on how to sign-write. Other sign writers have done the same making it an important side line to their business.

It all tends to show that if you decide to take up a sable brush and apply yourself having taken a course in the art of sign-writing, then this is one area of the industry that may be small, but provides an attractive living for those with the skills.


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