Woman at Work
Margaret Calvert

Margaret Calvert is one of the most important British graphic designers of our time. Her groundbreaking work on the signs for the British national road network means that it is almost impossible to travel anywhere in the UK and not benefit from her ultra-clear typography and cheerful pictograms. Her work has provided the gold standard for international highway directional signs. In a parallel career she became an inspirational teacher at the Royal College of Art, where for nearly four decades she taught a generation of graphic designers, many of them going on to establish worldwide reputations.

Born in South Africa in 1936, Margaret came to the UK with her mother and sister in 1950. After studying illustration and printmaking at Chelsea School of Art, she was invited by visiting tutor Jock Kinneir to assist him on designing the signs for Gatwick Airport (she had just turned 21). When Kinneir was put in charge of designing a new system for British road signs, it was the beginning of a long working partnership that led to the creation of the now famous road signing for the motorways alongside a complementary approach for the entire network, including pictograms, and onto work for the British Airports Authority, British Rail and the Tyne and Wear Metro in 1980. Margaret designed the lettering for the latter project, which is now available from Monotype as the Calvert typeface.

And now, at a time of unprecedented interest in Margaret’s work, which has included a recent Design Museum exhibition, a TV documentary currently in production, and a host of prestigious awards including this year’s New York Type Directors Club Medal, there is a book to celebrate her life and work. It is the definitive account of her career as a pioneering typographer, type designer, graphic designer and educator. Lavishly illustrated with rare glimpses into her archive and details of her legendary typefaces, it is designed by Margaret and A2/SW/HK, the studio co-founded by her frequent creative partner (and former student) Henrik Kubel and Scott Williams. The book is edited by Adrian Shaughnessy, with an introduction by Eye magazine editor, John L. Walters and an essay by Margaret’s friend and former student Marion Deuchars.

Film by Bruce Brown.