Gemma O’Brien’s Typography Art is All About Making a Statement

Gemma O’Brien’s philosophy is simple: take your work seriously, not yourself. The typography expert quit law school after realizing she needed to doing something creative.

“So I switched to a design degree and fell in love with typography after learning to hand-set type in the letterpress studio,” she recalled in an interview with PRINT Magazine. “From that point forward I have been developing a practice that sits between art, illustration, design, and typography.”

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🍂Lucky🍂 3 colour screen print from 2018

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Her passion for typography has flourished over the past 10 years into a full-time career, dedicated to drawing letters. O’Brien’s bold type, expressive calligraphy, and detailed illustration can be seen in advertising campaigns, editorial publications, and large-scale murals in galleries and interiors around the world.

“My style shifts within the bounds of lettering and typography,” she says. “Sometimes loose, energetic and calligraphic, and sometimes big, bold and intricately detailed. Often black and white.”

A number of her projects have received the Award of Typographic Excellence from the New York Type Directors Club, and in 2016 she was named one of PRINT Magazine’s New Visual Artists: 15 under 30. She has also collaborated with numerous global brands and publications including Apple, Google, Adobe, and The New York Times. Her typography art has also gained attention on social media, with more than 222k followers on Instagram alone.

Her earliest achievement? Winning a first-grade painting competition with an artwork of her pet chicken Rosie. Take a look at some of her latest work in the gallery below.

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My exhibition “Rest Less Soul” opens tonight and continues this weekend at @chinaheights gallery. Stop by if you’re in Sydney. Catalogue available through the gallery, international shipping available.👀 @okcrombie (who also happens to be my bf) interviewed me about the work for @monsterchildren (nepotism at its finest!) A little excerpt below: ➖➖➖ J: Hello, partner-in-life, I understand you have a new solo exhibition? Wow. What’s that all about? ➖➖➖ G: Hi Jason! I’m having a solo show at China Heights Gallery in Sydney, opening tonight (February the 15th) at 6pm. ➖➖➖ J: What’s in the show, sculptures of fish you made with wire, mud and feathers? ➖➖➖ G: Pretty much, no feathers though. J: Come on, nerd, talk about your art. G: It’s actually a collection of seven pieces. No mural this time, which is a little different for me. The works are paintings on birch panels. I experimented with a new technique using silkscreen printing for the base layers then hand painting and layering details on top. ➖➖➖ J: You’ve integrated text into the paintings, phrases; can you give some examples and also explain what they mean, why you chose them?➖➖➖G: I usually start with the phrases. I have a collection of post-it notes and sketch books filled with options. Some of the ones in my show include ‘Turn On Your Mind’, ‘Modern Woman Seeks Purity’, ‘Rest Less Soul’ and ‘Fate/Will’. I chose them based on how they work visually and how the meaning resonates with me. ‘Rest Less Soul’ describes my state this year. A feeling of seeking something more but not knowing what that might be. ‘Fate/Will’ is inspired by that Echo and the Bunnymen song (‘Killing Moon’), but I also like thinking about the idea of free will in general. Do I sound like a wanker? My favourite is ‘Turn On Your Mind’ because it could be about switching on or intentionally trying to break away from particular thought patterns. Generally, I choose phrases that resonate with me in a particular moment in time.

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