The Opening Hours is proud to present a whole new series of interviews with a selection of the contributing artists in chapter 4 of Go Font Ur Self*. The exhibition “dedicated to exploring and pushing the diverse range of techniques employed in type design of past, present and future through original pieces of work from talented typographers worldwide.”

We thought the best way to kick things off would be with one of Australia’s hardest working graffiti artists “Saynt”. If you live in Sydney, you should have come across his walls around the inner west for sure.

1. Describe yourself in a word

Stress

2. Describe your typography?

Some formal training as a designer and signwriter can be seen in there somewhere, however being a total graffiti junkie is probably a bigger influence on my work, and I bounce between commercial, ‘public’ styles and mashed up classic graffiti flavours.

3. Do you adhere to the rules and regulations of typography, or make up your own?

I have more rules governing my graffiti than type based projects- White keyline, in-line, highlights and ‘piano keys’ should be punishable by death!

4. What artists / typographers have influenced you in your recent work.

This work is some kind of response to all the toy panels and graffiti in general I have seen over the last few years, just wanted to drop a bomb on some suckers and no digital type I could come up with was angry enough to do the job so I bashed out a rough ‘face’ that looked like a death-threat… in blood!

5. What is the most acclaimed project you have worked on?

By day I am a community artist working on many projects with disadvantaged kids, watching them bash out their first wobbly looking piece and get psyched on graff is the best job going.

6. what is it about typography that you love?

26 letters can describe anything, and good typography is icing on the cake

7. What is your favourite letter and why?

The ‘S’- it’s so dope, whether it’s some QS with a No.6 sign brush, on screen in Adobe or pumping out a wildstyle piece, the ‘S’ is just too good, you can do so much with it.

8.  serif or san serif ?

Old school, New School- I cut out of school fool, its about whatever gets the job done.

9. what can we expect to see soon from you? Other projects, shows, etc.

Pieces, lots of pieces.

More on Saynt here