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Bruce Rogers (May 14, 1870 – May 21, 1957) was an American
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), and ...
and
type designer Type design is the art and process of designing typefaces. This involves drawing each letterform using a consistent style. The basic concepts and design variables are described below. A typeface differs from other modes of graphic production su ...
, acclaimed by some as among the greatest book designers of the twentieth century. Rogers was known for his "allusive" typography, rejecting modernism, seldom using asymmetrical arrangements, rarely using sans serif type faces, often favoring faces such as Bell (at the time known only as Brimmer),
Caslon Caslon is the name given to serif typefaces designed by William Caslon I (c. 1692–1766) in London, or inspired by his work. Caslon worked as an engraver of punches, the masters used to stamp the moulds or matrices used to cast metal ...
, his own Montaigne, a Jensonian precursor to his masterpiece of type design
Centaur A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as bein ...
. His books can fetch high sums at auction.


Early life

Born Albert Bruce Rogers in Linwood, now part of
Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, Indiana, West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home t ...
, he never used the name Albert and was known to associates as "BR." Rogers received a B.S. from
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...
in 1890. He enrolled at age 16, and was quickly recognized in his studies of illustration, allowing him to work with University catalogs, lettering for the yearbook, and the ''College Quarterly Magazine''. At Purdue, he worked with political cartoonist
John T. McCutcheon John Tinney McCutcheon (May 6, 1870 – June 10, 1949) was an American newspaper political cartoonist, war correspondent, combat artist, and author who won a Pulitzer Prize for his 1931 editorial cartoon, "A Wise Economist Asks a Question," an ...
on the student newspaper and yearbook. After graduation, Rogers worked as both an artist for the ''
Indianapolis News The ''Indianapolis News'' was an evening newspaper published for 130 years, beginning December 7, 1869, and ending on October 1, 1999. The "Great Hoosier Daily," as it was known, at one time held the largest circulation in the state of Indiana. ...
'' and as office boy for a railroad. After seeing several
Kelmscott Press The Kelmscott Press, founded by William Morris and Emery Walker, published fifty-three books in sixty-six volumes between 1891 and 1898. Each book was designed and ornamented by Morris and printed by hand in limited editions of around 300. Many ...
editions, Rogers became interested in producing fine books, and so moved to
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
, then a center of publishing, where he free-lanced for L. Prang and Co.


Typographer and type designer


Riverside Press period (1895–1911)

In 1895 he took a position designing books for Riverside Press in
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...
where he worked on trade books and designed book advertisements for the ''
Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
''. In 1900 a ''Department of Special Bookmaking'' for the production of fine editions was created with Mr. Rogers its head. More than sixty of these ''Riverside Press Editions'' were designed by Rogers, decorated with illustrations and ornament largely by him, and printed on handmade, damped paper. It was there, in 1901, that he cut his first typeface, ''Montaigne'', a Venetian style face named for the first book it appeared in, a 1903 limited edition of '' The Essays of Montaigne.''


New York/Dyke Mill period (1911–1916)

In 1912 Rogers moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
, where he worked both as an independent designer and as house designer for the
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 100 ...
. It was for the Museum's 1915 limited edition of Maurice de Guérin's ''The Centaur'' that he designed his most famous type-face,
Centaur A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as bein ...
. Like ''Montaigne'' it was based on the
Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetian and the like may also refer to: * Venetian language, a Romance language s ...
faces of
Nicolas Jenson Nicholas Jenson (c. 1420 – 1480) was a French engraver, pioneer, printer and type designer who carried out most of his work in Venice, Italy. Jenson acted as Master of the French Royal Mint at Tours and is credited with being the creator of one ...
. Rogers considered this face to be an improvement on his earlier ''Montaigne,'' both because his design had matured and because, on the advice of
Frederic Goudy Frederic William Goudy (, March 8, 1865 – May 11, 1947) was an American printer, artist and type designer whose typefaces include Copperplate Gothic, Goudy Old Style and Kennerley. He was one of the most prolific of American type designers and ...
, he had employed Robert Wiebking as the punch-cutter; and Rogers used
Centaur A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as bein ...
extensively for the rest of his career ''The Centaur'' was produced by Rogers in Dyke Mill at Carl Purington Rollins' ''Montague Press'' (hand-set by his wife, Anne Rogers (1867–1931)), and it is now one of the most collected books ever printed.


First visit to Britain

In 1916 Rogers left for
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
to work with Emery Walker, hoping to establish a press for fine editions. However, because of wartime conditions, only one book was produced, and Rogers soon sought employment with the
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambr ...
. He found conditions at the press to be poor, and his report to the syndics of the press resulted in many reforms and paved the way for the hiring of Stanley Morison as typographic adviser.


Mount Vernon period (1919–1928)

After returning to the U.S., Rogers met William Edwin Rudge, who began to use Rogers extensively as a book designer for his Mount Vernon Press. This was Rogers' most productive and remunerative period, as he worked three days a week designing books for Rudge, served as typographic adviser and designed books for
Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the reti ...
(from 1920 to 1936), served as typographic adviser to Lanston Monotype, and produced a few books for the ''June House Press'', which he operated in partnership with James Raye Wells and James Hendrickson.


Second visit to Britain

In 1928 Rogers left for England in hopes of producing an edition of Homer's ''
Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major Ancient Greek literature, ancient Greek Epic poetry, epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by moder ...
'' translated by T.E. Lawrence. Despite Rogers's being very "bookish," he soon became close, lifelong friends with the dashing Lawrence of Arabia. The project took four years and the fine book was printed in Centaur types, on gray handmade paper, bound in black Niger leather. Rogers also became engaged to produce the renowned '' Oxford Lectern Bible'' for
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...
. This project took six years, requiring annual trips to Oxford to oversee its completion in 1935. Joseph Blumenthal called this "The most important and notable typographic achievement of the twentieth century." To produce the Bible, an italic complement to ''Centaur'' was needed. As he did not feel capable of designing the sort of chancery face that he thought appropriate, Rogers chose to pair ''Centaur'' with Frederic Warde's ''Arrighi,'' a pairing retained to this day.


October House period (1932–1957)

In later years Rogers worked as a free-lancer, designed his ''World Bible,'' and wrote and designed his book on printing, ''Paragraphs on Printing'', published by William E. Rudge's Sons in 1943.


Personal life

In 1900 Rogers married Anna Embree Baker, and they remained together until her death in 1936. As Rogers spent most of his working life as a free-lancer, they lived frugally and were often in financial straits. Rogers purchased October House, his residence in
New Fairfield, Connecticut New Fairfield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 13,579 at the 2020 census. New Fairfield is one of five towns that surround Candlewood Lake, the largest lake in Connecticut. The town is located nor ...
, in 1925, and made this his permanent home from 1932 until his death. Rogers was a member of
the Typophiles ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, and smoked imported English cigarettes.


Death

Rogers died on May 18, 1957, in
New Fairfield, Connecticut New Fairfield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 13,579 at the 2020 census. New Fairfield is one of five towns that surround Candlewood Lake, the largest lake in Connecticut. The town is located nor ...
. In later life Rogers and his wife Anne donated a substantial collection of books, early manuscripts, and antique furniture to
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...
's Special Collection Library. The bulk of his papers are in the collection of the
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library () is the rare book library and literary archive of the Yale University Library in New Haven, Connecticut. It is one of the largest buildings in the world dedicated to rare books and manuscripts. Es ...
.


Works


Sayings of Bruce Rogers

* "Don't borrow contemporary work — you are sure to be found out." * "Never apologize." * "The first requisite of all book design is orderliness." * When told that something he had produced was not " according to Hoyle" he answered, "We're Hoyle.".


Typefaces

* Montaigne (1901, privately cast), punches cut by John Cumming * Centaur (original) (1914, privately cast by Barnhart Brothers & Spindler), matrices cut by Robert Wiebking of the Western Type Foundry. * Centaur (Monotype) (1929, Monotype Ltd. and Mackenzie & Harris), matrices re-cut for machine composition by British Monotype. Lawson, Alexander, '' Anatomy of a Typeface, ''David R. Godine, Publisher, Boston, 1990, , pp. 62-73.


Bookplates

In addition to his work as a typographer and type designer, Rogers worked designing ephemera, such as bookplates. Bookplates by Rogers that have survived in library and museum collections show that his bookplate designs were text-based, only rarely including small images, and frequently showcased his type designs. File:Bruce Rogers Bookplate-Frederick Gray Jackson.jpg, alt=Coat-of-arms drawing, An early (1900) Bruce Rogers bookplate, lacking his usual block text. File:Bruce Rogers Bookplate-Harvard College Library2.jpg, alt=alttext, Type-based bookplate for the Harvard College Library File:Bruce Rogers Bookplate-Harvard College Library.jpg, alt=alttext, A second bookplate for the Harvard College Library, featuring a different typeface File:Bruce Rogers Bookplate-Harvard College Library3.jpg, A third bookplate for the Harvard College Library, featuring a third typeface File:Bruce Rogers Bookplate-American Type Founders Company.jpg, alt=Image of text with an elaborate border of human figures, An elaborate Rogers bookplate for the Typographic Library and Museum of the
American Type Founders American Type Founders (ATF) Co. was a business trust created in 1892 by the merger of 23 type foundries, representing about 85% of all type manufactured in the United States. De Vinne, Theodore Low, ''The Practice of Typography,'' Century Comp ...
Company


Further reading

* Kelly, Jerry. ''The First Flowering: Bruce Rogers at the Riverside Press, 1896-1912 (2008. David Godine, Boston, USA) ith check-list* Rogers, Bruce. ''Pi; a hodge-podge of the letters, papers, and addresses written during the last sixty years'' (1972. Freeport, NY: Books for Libraries Press) * Rogers, Bruce, ''Paragraphs on Printing'' (1943. William E. Rudge's Sons, NY. Reprint 1980. Dover Publications, NY) * Targ, William. ''The making of the Bruce Rogers World Bible'' (1949. Cleveland: World Publishing Co.) * Warde, Frederic. ''Bruce Rogers, designer of books'' And ''Bruce Rogers: a bibliography; hitherto unrecorded work 1889-1925, complete works 1925-1936'', by Irvin Haas. (1936. Mount Vernon: The Peter Pauper Press; 1967 Port Washington, NY: Kennikat Press)
T''he work of Bruce Rogers, jack of all trades, master of one: a catalogue of an exhibition arranged by the American Institute of Graphic Arts and the Grolier Club of New York''
With an introduction by D. B. Updike, a letter from John T. McCutcheon, and an address by Mr. Rogers. Publisher: Oxford University Press, New York 1939


References


External links

*

* ttp://harvardmagazine.com/extras/bruce-rogers-centaur An article on Centaur, a type face designed by Rogers, in ''Harvard Magazine''*
Linotype Font Designer Gallery entry for Bruce Rogers

Emery Walker Trust


From th
Rare Book and Special Collections Division
at the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

Bookplates by Bruce Rogers in the University of Delaware Library's William Augustus Brewer Bookplate Collection

Inventory to the Collection on Bruce Rogers at Purdue UniversityBruce Rogers Papers
a
the Newberry Library
* Bruce Rogers Collection. General Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Bruce 1870 births 1957 deaths AIGA medalists American graphic designers Purdue University alumni American printers American typographers and type designers People from Madison County, Indiana People from New Fairfield, Connecticut