Fairground’s legacy lives on in new University partnership

The thrill of the funfair will be kept alive for years to come after two of Berkshire’s oldest institutions teamed up to inspire a new generation of signwriting stars. 

University of Reading students were given a fascinating insight into the 100-year-old skills of designing fairground art and hand painted letters at Carters Steam Fair on Tuesday, October 25, by owner and signwriter Joby Carter. 

With the much-loved travelling funfair set to pack up for the final time at the end of the month, the guided tour of fairground fonts and hand painted lettering visible on the vintage rides and vehicles was a valuable educational opportunity for the University’s Typography & Graphic Communication students. 

The partnership - which also includes a signwriting competition following the guided tour - was launched to help spread interest and awareness of the unique typographical skill. 

Joby Carter, fairground owner and signwriter, said: “Traditional hand painted lettering and fairground art is often missing from the art and design archives as the styles are often painted over or updated as part of the continual evolution of fairground rides in line with popular culture of the time.

“These 100-year-old skills were recently at risk of dying out due to the increasing use of computers, digital software, vinyls and masking but at the fair we have been passionate about ensuring they are kept alive for future generations via a mixture of workshop courses, virtual courses and my best-selling book Signwriting Tips, Tricks and Inspiration. 

“This collaboration with the University of Reading will help us on our mission to raise awareness of signwriting and continue the interest in the craft.”

The partnership between the two institutions did not end with the visit to the fair as a competition has been set up with prizes that will further inspire Reading students.

First prize is a place on Joby Carter’s five-day intensive signwriting course, funded by the University of Reading, while second and third place will receive a Carters Steam Fair signwriting bundle.

James Lloyd, Lecturer in Typography and Graphic Communication at the University of Reading, said: “Most people assume graphic design happens exclusively on a computer these days, and of course much of it does. 

“But the history of letterforms – the shapes and styling of the characters we all write or print, is intrinsically linked to analogue tools that have evolved over many thousands of years. 

“These shapes are also guided by specific objectives that are very much part of the real world – whether ensuring clarity and trustworthiness in delivering financial information, or eliciting joy from the vibrancy and swelling forms of fairground lettering. 

“Writing systems have rules, but Joby’s effervescent style pushes at the boundaries in a way that truly exemplifies the creativity that can come from constraints – and the need for a practised hand in order to execute such ideas with conviction.”