This is the place

On the night of Monday, May 22nd 2017, at a concert by Ariana Grande, Manchester was witness to an act of terror that will be forever etched into the nation’s memory. The response, from the first moment of that indiscriminate, vicious blast was heartening and awe-inspiring. The selfless and generous acts of help and support by the front-line services and every strata of the community, have been recognised, praised and fully recorded.

Inspired by an idea from our friend James Torry, co-founder of Doodledo Motion, the creative community responded as one, to the request to visualise, in whatever way they chose, each line of Tony Walsh’s cathartic poem ‘This is the place’. We were honoured to be asked to design, compile and produce the resultant book.

We felt a huge sense of responsibility. Only our very best would be good enough. There was a need to produce a book that not only Glorious Creative and the creative community could be proud of, but that also met the hopes and expectations of the various organisations who helped to make the publication happen. The content needed to be handled with sensitivity and care and to present a balanced and respectful response. We genuinely hope we have done justice to a publication that means so much to so many.

We wanted to create a unique typeface, something firmly rooted in the fabric of the city.
‘THIS IS THE FONT’ takes references from the many mills, warehouses and buildings that feature their historic names and identities, immaculately chiselled into marble, stone and brick.

The outcome for all those associated with the book, was an opportunity ‘to do something’ in the face of an atrocity that leaves us all with a sense of “what can I possibly do to help in some way”. In terms of the contribution to The Emergency Fund and associated charities, the initial 5000 print run will raise in excess of £135,000. But perhaps the most important outcome is to demonstrate that the human spirit is neither broken nor bowed, when faced with a denial of all that is fine and decent. Desmond Tutu said it with simple eloquence, “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness”.