Profile: Designer & Letterer Jeff Rogers

				(Photos:Eric Ryan Anderson) Designer and letterer Jeff Rogers transforms words into art, often bringing a quote or common phrase to life with a sunny perspective that’s both retro and contemporary at the same time. After building an impressive portfolio of theatre artwork at SpotCo, he decided to strike out on his own, working from his New York home studio. The Texas native’s work is featured in Steven Heller’s recent Typography Sketchbooks, Chronicle’s upcoming Little Book of Letterpress follow-up, and the Type Directors Club Typography Annual later this year, as well as in their international traveling exhibit.
				What I’ve wanted to be ever since I first heard the question, “what do you want to be when you grow up?”
				I am currently working on a poster for an Off-Broadway theatre play and doing a branding project for a New York-based vocal coaching company. There’s also the constant smattering of self-initiated projects (finishing up an alphabet made out of light bulb type, for example).
				Mainly I just like to have fun. It’s so gratifying to create something that I enjoy making and am proud of when it’s finished. As far as style goes, a main source of inspiration is my grandmother who was an amazing landscape painter. She taught me to paint at a young age and now every time I draw or paint, I think of her. Not only her work, but who she was as a person. So much of who a person is comes out in their work. I want people to feel happy when they see my work so it’s important to be happy and have a positive outlook on life. That’s who my grandmother was and you could see it in her paintings. Stylistically, the fauvist painters are a big influence in my painting and for type I love looking at old wood type posters, circus posters, and hand-painted signs.
				Recently, I’ve been most proud of a piece I made for Uppercase magazine. It was recently featured in the Communication Arts Typography Annual, which is a huge deal for me. I pretty much passed out when I found out it was accepted. That was the first project I did after leaving my full-time job at SpotCo and went freelance. I poured a lot of time into the piece and really forced myself to go into some new territory style wise. I love the piece both for how it turned out and for what it symbolizes in my career—that I am finally making it on my own as a designer, which has been a dream of mine for many years.
				I would love to break into the music industry. I am a musician and I am very passionate about music and would love to do some more work in that industry for bands that I love. If I could make silkscreen concert posters all day, I would pretty much be in heaven. There are so many people doing such amazing gig posters that I feel like I could never compete. People like The Small Stakes, Aesthetic Apparatus, and A. Micah Smith are a few of my favorites.
				Well, certainly the three that I just mentioned in the previous question, and so many others. The Internet really makes it easy to soak up so much work from many different people. (It’s tough to stay unique though, and not look like everyone else, which I see a lot on the web… but that’s another issue). I can name a few people though, like letterers/designers Dana Tanamachi, Brent Couchman, Ryan Feerer, Amanda Spielman, Eric Maranovich, Will Bryant, Jon Contino, Dan Cassaro, Mikey Berton, Darren Booth; illustrators Mike Perry, Christian Northeast, Lotta Nieman; and photographers Eric Anderson, Wade Griffith, Andrew Shepard, Sara Kerens… and I could go on and on and on.
				Italy… but more realistically probably back home to Texas.
				I worked at my dad’s kolache bakery all through high school.
				Worrying about where my next project will come from… if there will BE a next project.
				The fun I have when I am making things… and the guilt I feel when I sleep too long.
				Visit Jeff Rogers… howdyjeff.com Jeff Rogers store on Society6 @frogers