Nicolas Fredrickson Design & Lettering

It was such a blast working with on this project! Thomas Salerno tells the story of Nicolas Steno, the Father of Geology. Early on, when I found old sketchbook illustrations from Steno, I knew I wanted this to feel like a field guide book. We worked with to imitate Steno’s own work and worked meticulously with our printer to create something beautiful and physically satisfying. Super proud of this one. Thanks .sheaf for the epic photos!

The Golden Key and other Fairy Tales | George MacDonald might not be as well known as the giants he influenced, like C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, and Madeleine L’Engle, but this book introduces readers to the “Forgotten Father of Fantasy Fiction.”

Word on Fire teamed up with to illustrate these stories, and Srdjan Vidakovic for the incredible scratchboard style illustration on the cover. I was grateful to be able to handle the cover lettering, as well as the interior layout which was inspired by classic books giving us generous margins for an easy read.

It was also a really fun exploration in print design. We printed on an uncoated purple paper, and used a combination of screened black, matte white foil, and gold foil. This book looks amazing in person, I’m so proud of how it turned out!

I started lettering close to 4 years ago, and early on in my career (March 2014), I painted lettering on an old saw of mine. A great designer named Zachary Smith had inspired me to do this, so I don't claim that I invented the idea of lettering on something other than paper ;)

My sister Bianca was at Hollywood Candy earlier today, and recognized a piece of mine. It was for sale and she sent me a picture of it. All would have been well, but the piece was in my office, not at the candy store. I noticed pretty quickly that it wasn't my piece, but someone had copied it. If you know who the "artist" is, let me know! I'm sure they're just a well meaning person who appreciates design, but I'd appreciate them not making money off my work ;)

Inspiration > Imitation