Grave of Anthony Froshaug in Highgate Cemetery

Anthony Froshaug (1920–1984) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

typographer Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing when displayed. The arrangement of type involves selecting typefaces, point sizes, line lengths, line-spacing ( leading), an ...

, designer and teacher, born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to a Norwegian father and English mother. Influenced by ideas of European modernism, particularly the work of

Jan Tschichold Jan Tschichold (born Johannes Tzschichhold, also known as Iwan Tschichold, or Ivan Tschichold; 2 April 1902 – 11 August 1974) was a German calligrapher, typographer and book designer. He played a significant role in the development of gra ...

, Froshaug is considered by some to be the most convincing exponent of

modern typography Modern typography was a reaction against the perceived decadence of typography and design of the late 19th century. It is mostly associated with the works of Jan Tschichold and Bauhaus typographers Herbert Bayer, László Moholy-Nagy, El Lissitzky ...

in Britain. Anthony Froshaug's archive is located at the

University of Brighton Design Archives The University of Brighton Design Archives centres on British and global design organisations of the twentieth century. It is located within the University of Brighton Grand Parade campus in the heart of Brighton and is an international research r ...

. A significant collection of Froshaug’s printed ephemera, representing his work between 1945 and 1965 is held at St Bride Library in London. This material originally formed the basis of a retrospective exhibition held at Watford College of Technology in 1965. St Bride Library also has a number of original letterpress formes relating to Froshaug’s work.

Education

Froshaug attended

Charterhouse School (God having given, I gave) , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , president ...

and studied book production and

wood engraving Wood engraving is a printmaking technique, in which an artist works an image or ''matrix'' of images into a block of wood. Functionally a variety of woodcut, it uses relief printing, where the artist applies ink to the face of the block and ...

at the

Central School of Arts & Crafts The Central School of Art and Design was a public school of fine and applied arts in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1896 by the London County Council as the Central School of Arts and Cra ...

from 1937 to 1939.

Career

Design and typography

On leaving the Central in 1939 he began to practice as a freelance graphic designer and typographer. As a typographer, he has been viewed as unusual in running his own small (un-private) press, including two periods of printing in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

(1949–52, 1954–7). He worked with Alan Kitching.

Teaching

Froshaug was a natural teacher: he taught typography, first at the Central School (1948–9, 1952–3), then at the Hochschule für Gestaltung Ulm (1957–61), the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

in London (1961–4), Watford School of Art (1964–6); in 1970 he returned to teach (part-time) at the Central School, continuing there until illness forced him to stop. He later also taught at the

London College of Printing The London College of Communication is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. It specialises in media-related subjects including advertising, animation, film, graphic design, photography and sound arts. It has approximately ...

Department of Art and Design from 1980–82. As both a practitioner and a teacher, Froshaug preferred an experimental workshop environment with opportunities for discussion, rather than more formal learning structures.Anthony Froshaug on th
Archives Hub
/ref> He is buried on the eastern side of

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Froshaug, Anthony English typographers and type designers English graphic designers 1920 births 1984 deaths Burials at Highgate Cemetery Schoolteachers from London People educated at Charterhouse School Academics of the Royal College of Art English people of Norwegian descent Design educators Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design

Education

Career

Design and typography

Teaching

Further reading

References