I find it tough to get back the week notes train on time once it is delayed, so I am only sitting down to write these two days past when I should have.
WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING
1.
Along with Amber, I spent most of the week of the 10th in Bangalore. I was there to teach two workshops: one at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, where incidentally, Prateek studied; and another public one about pixel type at the Underline Center. With the first one, I tried to share my own experiences and methodologies behind documenting and studying street lettering in India and making zines with the students.
It was a bit of a task to carry books and other material all the way from Delhi for these, but I think it was ultimately worth it. One of the participants of the pixel type workshop messaged me later to say that it was like living through one of my newsletter issues as a live experience, and that really made my day. Of course, this particular workshop would have been impossible without all the support that Noopur provided in the run-up and on the day, as well as Rasagy, who played both host and helper. It is truly amazing what you can do if you have supportive folks to bolster you.
2.
Despite being on a pretty hectic schedule, I managed to squeeze in some time to meet folks in Bangalore — coffee with Pranav one evening and Radhika another afternoon, dinner with Pratul and Aarika, and meeting Namrata, who was sweet enough to drop by towards the end the pixel type workshop to say hello.
Amber and I ate at some of our old favourites in Indiranagar like Chinita and Paris Panini. We also tried the Goan fare at Klaa Kitchen, where we grabbed not one but two meals.
On Sunday, our last day in Bangalore, we spent a quiet morning at the relatively new Museum of Art & Photography. I was interested in catching their latest exhibit on postcards from the 20th century. It was small and intimate, and while I would have loved to learn more about the design and production of the postcards, I quite enjoyed it. The highlight of the visit was being able to experience Jim Lambie’s installation Zobop.
3.
The last couple of external presentations at our weekly TypeTogether meetings have been pretty great. We had Petra Dočekalová talk about a script typeface development project, and Abeera Kamran about Urdu typesetting and Noori Nastaliq. I find it tough sometimes to soak into the talks we’ve been having because they are sandwiched between work, but these two really stood out.
4.
Once back, I’ve really had to hit the ground running with work. My days have been filled with a lot of bézier-wrangling. I had a bit of my cervical rib related arm pain resurface, and I’ve been feeling anxious that the two might be connected. Anyway, swimming helped, and I am hoping that it was a one time thing.