Always Now: Typography and Semiotics. Peter Saville in conversation with Paul Barnes

Throughout his career, Peter Saville has consistently put type to work, often in conjunction with imagery, to elegantly sign the ‘way' for many of us. In conversation with his friend and typographic consultant, Paul Barnes, Saville will discuss how his work, from his time as Co-founder and Art Director of legendary UK label Factory Records through to a more recent collaboration with Sir Jonathan Ive’s studio LoveFrom, has been informed by an intuitive understanding of the semiotic power typography has to shape contemporary culture.

Peter Saville (b.1955, Manchester, England). As co-founder and art director of the independent UK record label Factory Peter Saville created some of the most iconic record covers of all time, best exemplified by those he designed for Joy Division and New Order between 1979–1993. His radical approach seemed to break all the rules, sometimes omitting information about artists or titles, or employing visual codes, fundamentally questioning modes of consumption and communication.

Going on to work extensively in fashion and the cultural sector, his achievements were celebrated in ‘The Peter Saville Show’ at the Design Museum London, 2003. His first major show in a contemporary art museum was at the Migros Museum in Zurich, 2005 and he continues to exhibit internationally. His first monograph was published by Frieze, 2003. Saville is a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) and won the London Design Medal in 2013. In 2020 he received the CBE in recognition of the positive impact of his work over the past 40 years.

Paul Barnes (b. 1970) is a graphic designer specializing in the fields of lettering, typography, type design and publication design. He is partner with Christian Schwartz at Commercial Type, a type foundry based in London and New York.