Katherine White: type in the environment

We were asked to take about 20 photographs of interesting examples of type in the environment. Here are my 20, which I have put into black and white for the sake of avoiding clashing colours (my worst thing). Some are corporate, some vernacular, some are fun and some are serious.

I took this photo on the tube on my way to college (it is a bit blurred as I took it quickly - you are not allowed to take photographs on the tube in case you are a terrorist). As a person who thought the White Stripes were the big new thing (after discovering them a decade after their first album came out) it is unsurprising that I had never heard of Antony and the Johnsons. I love this vernacular type though, kinda naive, kinda squiggly and cool. Might just have to listen to their music!

I came home one day to find this on our fridge - our painters had been busy with Lola's fridge magnets. I actually want to get her some new magnets because I really hate the font of the ones we've got - none of the stroke widths make any sense and the colours clash really badly. Don't think Lola minds though.

Gordon's Wine Bar - a fantastic little cellar bar just by Embankment tube station on Villiers Street. I've no idea how long it has been going but judging by this lovely delapidated old lantern it must have been around for a while.

This EAT. logo was designed by Pentagram studios back in 2007 and is fantastic in its minimalist and clean cut look. No mess, no fuss, just EAT. The font is Akzidenz Grotesk Bold.

Herman Ze German. A brilliantly stereotyped German man turned into a logo. He is a sausage, he has a funny moustache, he is called Herman and he can't pronounce his 'th's. Lovely.

This is a crop of the sign for the 'ha ha bar and grill'. The typeface is traditional and comfortable but the actual words 'ha ha' and the lack of Upper Case lettering says ' we are easy going, we don't bother with formalities, we like a joke, come on in and join us!'. Very effective.

I used to work for Foyles when I first moved to London in 2003, and again when I came back from Istanbul in 2006. This lit-up sign will always evoke fond memories for me.

This type was printed on a tarpaulin on the Southbank. Because of the heavy rain and howling wind I couldn't, as hard as tried, get a photo in focus. But because the word is 'move' I think the blurring is quite suitable.

Let's go to heaven - why not? I took these 3 photographs at the Southbank skate park. There is so much grafitti there I almost missed this message, spray-painted casually across the concrete. I wonder who wrote it?

Not really sure what to say about this one other than it is a nice message to come across when hurrying along on a wet and miserable evening.

I took these 2 pictures on my way to the corner shop this morning. I live on Holyport Road and Crabtree Lane is just around the corner. They are both brilliant old rusty signs and much nicer than the modern, reflective plastic ones. (note the snow coming down over the 2nd picture!)

I took these 2 pictures at the V&A museum on my way to a Photoshop class. I think they are both screenprints or maybe Letterpress. I love the way the word 'taxi' jumps out of the first picture as is it is being shouted from a street corner. The 'Cor Blimey Trousers' is a close up of an Evening Standard billboard poster. Great.

Not so much type in the environment as my own handwriting. This is a page from my 'book book', a notebook in which I write down all the books I have read. Sad, I know.