A human touch

It was curious walking around Signlink Live 2017 that one of the areas of the show that attracted the most visitors consistently was Craftsman’s Corner. This saw four masters of their art pulled together to exhibit the very best of their work and provide hands-on demonstrations and tuition for interested visitors across sign-writing, bas-relief carving, pin-striping, and gold-leaf gilding.



Those craftsmen hosting it—which included Neil Horne of The Pub Sign Co as the sign-writing area—all communicated their profound joy that so many sign-makers, which had never held a brush in their hand or learnt a craft such as this, were deeply interested to find out these skills still survive. And more than that, they wanted to know how they could offer them as a service to their customers either through training or sub-contracting to these four artisans.



So, when I embarked on planning Signlink’s forward features schedule for 2018 I thought it was well worth specifically covering sign-writing, showcasing some of its key talents, and continuing to raise its profile as a sign-making skill that is not just worth preserving for cultural posterity, but for genuine commercial opportunity.

Counter culture

One of the first sign-writers to respond to my call for commentators on this issue was Colin Ellenden. He qualified as a graphic designer in 1982 but was unable to find a decent job in graphics. Then he started doing some basic signs for a local garage before working in a department store in Cumbria as a display artist. In the early days much of his job included ticket writing, but from there he worked in several different sign companies as a sign-writer and illustrator, mainly doing pub sign pictorials. It was in 1993 that he set up his own business, and he has never looked back.



Ellenden explains how he sees the market for sign-writing today: “Demand for hand lettering is still strong, especially for gold leaf and an ‘olde worlde’ vintage look. I also do a lot of hand written point-of-sale work. I think this is because using computer lettering on an old building just does not fit in properly. It needs to have that genuine ever so slightly ‘perfectly imperfect’ feel about it.



“As for the future of sign-writing I think it will always have its place alongside modern technology. I have always been busy and surprisingly enough I have never had a problem finding work.”

Ellenden also points to what he thinks is driving the continued demand for sign-writing, and indeed a renaissance in its fortunes: “I think we are living in a digitally-saturated world that is very much looking to the past for something real, something with a human touch, and so retro-design is very much back in. In fact, I would say ‘retro’ is big business.”


What Ellenden is describing is also cited by all the sign-writers I have spoken to. Indeed, it is actually part of a wider counter culture that is reaction to the saturation of digital media in our daily lives. Whether it is hipsters buying handmade vintage clothing in Camden, vintage printing presses going back into service to produce wedding stationery and unique event invitations or gig tickets, or a boom in Christmas markets across the country selling handmade wooden toys for children, there is identifiable push back against digital technology tracking our lives and shaping our consumer choices.

Ellenden continues: “I have done so many interesting projects over the years, vintage rally cars, pubs and restaurants in far flung places, honours boards for arcane clubs and societies, every day is enjoyable, and every day is different.

“There have been many occasions recently though when people have said to me, ‘I didn’t know that people still did this now’. They thought it was a completely lost art. But that is beginning to change as a new generation discovers for themselves that something made through human skill, talent, and ingenuity is worth more on every count than something made on the cheap and pumped out on mass to cater for the latest fashion trend.”

I put it to Ellenden that sign-making businesses today really are missing a trick by not tying up with a sign-writer and offering it as a special service for clients who want something to give them a unique feel. The sign-maker can still make a mark up on the sign-writing, and of course commercially benefit from winning the wider project by offering something to the customer others are not able to.

What though of how a sign-maker today can use their current staff to learn the trade once again and offer it directly in-house? Ellenden comments: “It depends if people really want to learn it. I don’t know how many youngsters want to spend the time and energy required to do something where the demand for it is niche. It is not an instant thing, and people want to be able to buy some equipment today and be churning work out tomorrow. It takes about two years to get proficient at it, starting small and growing it. I have been doing it for 35 years and doing it on Saturdays and Sundays, and I am still learning my craft as some jobs still really stretch me.”
 
Brushy to his friends

Now, Brian the Brush was the next sign-writer to get in contact with me after my call-out, and he has some very interesting views on this sector and its future.

After beginning a Fine Art course at Bradford Art College, he undertook a sign-writing apprenticeship at the Busby’s department store in Bradford and explains he “had the pleasure of learning from some of the greatest artisans of their generation”.

Known as ‘Brushy’ to his friends, he explains how his interest sparked into a full-blown career: “They taught me well. I discovered I had a natural flair for sign-writing and loved learning the trade, so I decided to open up my own business. And 40 years later, I’m still going strong and enjoying every second.”

He also backs up Ellenden by emphasising that demand is back on the up for sign-writing, and that it is definitely a service every sign-maker should be able to offer to their customers as an option to realise their goals where appropriate: “I am lucky enough to be skilled in lots of different aspects of the sign-writing profession and so I am always in great demand throughout the UK. I work for a wide range of clients, from blue chip companies to small, independent traders. Some of my more interesting recent work has included projects for the Tower of London, The Victoria and Albert Museum, and Marks and Spencer.”

I specifically asked him why he feels both individual customers and business customers alike still value sign-writing in the face of digitally printed alternatives: “I think digital prints are too clinical and sterile. A sign-writer’s skill is in the handling of a paintbrush and producing bespoke designs. There are still customers who value the traditional, creative, and artisan approach of a sign-written project as opposed to the monotonous appearance of digitally printed alternatives.”

On the subject of whether sign-makers could use his services, he also explains this is a niche where a good number of businesses have already seen an opportunity: “We are lucky at Brian the Brush to work for many UK sign-making companies that do not employ a sign-writer of their own, and do not have staff capable of undertaking such projects.

“I feel there will always be a need for traditional sign-writing and gold-leaf gilding. In recent years we have seen a major upsurge in demand for high-end, quality work. I believe this will continue for years to come as traditional sign-writing offers a finished product that you cannot replicate in any other medium.”

Digital reboots traditional

Now, after I decried digital media and its saturation of modern society, it is very ironic that one of the sources driving the renaissance in demand for traditional sign-writing is social media. Indeed, photos of his work posted on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Linkedin and Whatsapp groups have helped drive more work to Neil Horne of The Pub Sign Co over the last few years.



Horne began in 1984 as a self-taught poster writer/graphic designer in full time employment. He worked for 14 years lettering and air brushing posters, banners, and signs for the United States Air Force at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk; then in 1998 he turned full time self-employed until the current day.



Commenting on the aforementioned trend of digital platforms driving work for traditional crafts, he says: “It’s not so much a rise in demand, as a rise in awareness through social media. People now know we exist. Almost all work now is either referrals or social media contact. As much as people say there is a resurgence in demand for hand painted work, I think that is due to access to the wonderful work people do through social media.

“It’s almost a reaction to digital print. Recently I was painting a pictorial at Signlink Live and a chap stands there watching me and comments, ‘I didn’t know you could make signs like that’.”

Horne explains that the advantage a hand letterer has is they have studied design and layout to some degree: “It’s not about throwing photos and effects at everything. Some of the great sign writers about now produce some incredibly simple, but visually stunning, signs. They understand letter forms and spacing, it makes a difference.” On the issue of whether mainstream sign-makers could use his skills to offer a unique service of their own to their existing client base: “Well I would say yes, of course.

“As much as technology has transformed the sign industry, gilding, pictorial painting, and carving are physical disciplines. Breweries, for example, have embraced a more traditional look for their pubs. We don’t have apprenticeships anymore, so these skills are at a premium. But now there is a growing awareness and appreciation for what we do and the sign-writer can go from strength-to-strength. Signlink Live gave some of us a platform to demonstrate our skills and the response was incredible. Long may it continue.”
 
Handmade renaissance

Turning to my final respondent to my call for comment on the future of the sign-writing sector, I also had the pleasure of corresponding with Martyn King of Vimart Signwriting. Often working in London he feels that it is our capital city that really kick-started the push back towards the use of traditional skills. He ‘got the bug’ for sign-
writing immediately on leaving the sixth form in 1973, and has never looked back since—founding Vimart Signwriting in 1978.



King explains the journey and also references the same trend evidenced by Horne: “It has been good to build up a client base over the years as previous contracts have often generated further work through word of mouth. Even now I live outside of the capital, London still generates a lot of work. New contracts are often gained through web searches and it is good to know that when customers have used my services they usually retain my details for future work and pass it on to their associates and colleagues.”



King says the demand for sign-writing is “still high” and continuing to grow due to the trends mentioned above. He also explains that a drive back towards the ‘good life’ has also helped generate new business for him, for instance with the boom in narrow boating and tourism around the canals. Every boat needs a hand-written sign and every decent pub a traditional name board.

“I seem to be as busy now as I have ever been, although demands from customers have never altered and often the final thing they think of when opening a new business is the sign-writer. Over the past few years especially I feel there has been a higher demand for traditional work and speaking generally to customers they seem to be getting tired of same old same old ‘cold’ digitally printed signs.

He continues: “Hand-written signs have a character all of their own and this will never be mimicked. I have seen this trend in the past, and if I live long enough will probably see it over and over again. Sign-writing doesn’t die. It has an inordinate characteristic of surviving the ever-changing trends in the sign industry. Since my time in the trade I have witnessed the development of Perspex signs with or without illumination, cut-out letters which are individually applied to surfaces, computer signage, digital signs, vinyl wrapping, and the more recent development of 3D printing. Vimart Signwriting is still here and intends to be for quite a while yet.”


King also explains that he is very keen to spread the message about sign-writing, its beauty, and genuine commercial opportunities: “I work on certain contracts for a major sign company in the UK, which operates within the brewing industry. While they have no sign-writers directly on their books, they subcontract sign-writing work out. I also have a similar relationship with a large sign company in Kentucky, USA that have their own contracts with other global companies that require either sign-writing or gold leaf work here in the UK. I do try to develop further work in this respect through the traditional sign-writing courses that I run trying to encourage sign companies to release an employee for traditional training.”

Speaking to all of the above there is a genuine consensus that although sign-writing does go through the usual fluctuations in popularity, it will always be there.

That said, King concludes this odyssey very succinctly by emphasising that it needs collective action to ensure this craft continues to not just survive but thrive: “In line with so many other traditional skills, there needs to be a continued investment in educating new sign-writers. It often seems to be a forgotten trade within higher education colleges and other training establishments with no recognised accreditations available today. I often get enquiries from prospective employees who send in a CV in the hope of learning the trade. Though this is encouraging to a small business like this, I am forever frustrated by the lack of opportunities offered in the form of apprenticeships at bigger sign-makers.”

O Factoid: It takes roughly two years of consistent practice and on the job learning to become a proficient
sign-writer. O

Sign-writing remains in demand because it offers that human connection and I think many sign-makers really are missing a trick by not making their clients aware of its beauty and impact, and also by not simply tying up with an existing sign-writer. If demand from the particular client base takes off, then the next step to getting an apprentice trained up will not only be of long-term commercial benefit, but also help ensure that these skills remain alive for future generations to use and enjoy.
 
If you want to find out more about sign-writing and how to include it within your sign business then please feel free to contact Collin Ellenden on cellenden@hotmail.com, Brian the Brush on info@brianthebrushuk.com, Neil Horne of The Pub Sign Co on thepubsignco@hotmail.co.uk, and Martyn King of Vimart Signwriting on martynking@talk21.com.


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