Carl Dair | Richvale, Ontario – print ad, Carl Dair, 1956

This quietly daring little ad offers a glimpse of Carl Dair in transition – a designer whose name was becoming increasingly well known. The message is minimal, almost cryptic, but intentional: just his name, location, and phone number. Unfortunately, poor printing obscured some of the sophistication, particularly in the fine details of the typefaces: Typo Script Extended and Bodoni No. 975J.

Notes

By 1956, Carl Dair’s reputation was firmly established in Canada and beginning to gain international recognition. That same year he departed for Haarlem, Netherlands, to study under master letter-engraver P. H. Rädisch at Joh. Enschedé en Zonen. Though his apprenticeship was brief, it laid the foundation for his later creation of Cartier, Canada’s first Latin text typeface, released in 1967.

This modest, but nevertheless bold, print ad may have been an experiment – a test of how little needed to be said to leave an impression. It was not a call to action so much as a presence, a marker of Dair’s professional standing. Whether or not it generated commissions, it undoubtedly kept his name circulating in the design community. Quietly and perhaps even unknowingly, Carl Dair was becoming a brand. – Rod McDonald

Artifact Text

Carl Dair | Richvale, Ont., Telephone Avenue 5-1869

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Artifact

Date

1956

Title

Carl Dair | Richvale, Ontario

Description

One colour magazine print ad

6.5 × 10 inches

Publication

Publisher

Client

Carl Dair

Credits

Agency:

Studio:

Creative_Director:

Art_Director:

Design: Carl Dair

Typography:

Hand_Lettering:

Calligraphy:

Illustration:

Art:

Author:

Writing:

Printing:

Biography:

Principal Typefaces

Text: Typo Script Extended, Bodoni No. 975J, (listed as: re-cut Bodoni Bold in the 1927 Cooper & Beatty book)

Find more:

Typo Script Bodoni

Region

Ontario

Language

English

Holding

Copyright Status

Artifact copyright

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Notes copyright

Accompanying notes are licensed under Creative Commons licensing CCbyNC which allows for non-commercial use with attribute.