015. Betty Cooke and Ellen Lupton: From Jewelry to Typography

Amber Asay (0:00)

Before we begin today's episode, I want to take a moment to acknowledge some sad news. After recording this conversation, we learned that Betty Cooke has passed away. Betty was a true visionary whose work has inspired generations, and it's an honor to share her story with you today. This episode now stands as a small tribute to her life, her artistry, and the enduring legacy she leaves behind. Our thoughts are with her loved ones and everyone in the design community who admired her remarkable contributions. With that said, let's dive into this episode celebrating both Betty Cooke's incredible work and the insights from our guest, Ellen Lupton.

Hello and welcome to the Women Designers You Should Know podcast where we explore the lives and legacies of the visionary minds who have shaped our visual world. I'm your host, Amber Asay, and today we have a truly special episode featuring not one, but two extraordinary figures in the design community. Our guest today is the renowned Ellen Lupton, a prolific writer, curator, and educator whose influential books and teachings have profoundly impacted the field of design. From her groundbreaking work, Thinking With Type to her leadership in design education at MICA, Ellen's contributions are as expansive as they are inspiring. We'll also be delving into the life and work of Betty Cooke, a trailblazing jewelry designer celebrated for her minimalist and modernist creations. Cooke's jewelry is revered for its sculptural elegance, characterized by clean lines, geometric shapes, and a simplicity that's uniquely her own. Her pieces have enchanted collectors and fashion enthusiasts for decades, solidifying her status as a luminary in contemporary jewelry design. Before we begin, I want to quickly mention that I've just released a bonus episode on Patreon, which is a follow up to our call for submissions on the theme of persistence. To access bonus content, you can join the lowest tier and there's plenty more to come. Okay, now let's dive into the remarkable careers of these two creative forces and uncover the stories, struggles and successes that have defined their journeys. Hello, Ellen, welcome to the podcast.

Ellen Lupton (2:26)

Hi, how are you?

Amber Asay (2:27)

Good, how are you?

Ellen Lupton (2:29)

Wonderful.

Amber Asay (2:30)

I am so excited to have you here. You were never my professor, but I learned about typography from you. I picked up your Thinking With Type book about 14 years ago, and I couldn't put it down, and you taught me so much about the introduction of typography, and I've held on to that information ever since then, and so I'm so excited to talk to you today.

Ellen Lupton (2:57)

That's so fantastic to hear.

Amber Asay (3:01)

And so I always like to go way back to your childhood and your upbringing. Can you tell us more about any early influences that sparked your interest in design? Were there particular moments or experiences during your adolescence that directed you towards a career in design?

Ellen Lupton (3:22)

Sure. Well, like many young people, I considered myself to be an artist. In high school, I was one of the art girls. But I was interested in what was called commercial art at the time. And a key moment for me was my dad subscribed to The Village Voice, which was like a hippie weekly newspaper from the Greenwich Village in New York. We lived in Baltimore, but he wanted to be in on what the cats were doing. And there was this article, he's like, you've got to hear about this. The New York City trash trucks had been repainted all white, and with the word sanitation in lowercase Helvetica. And this is like 1972 or something. And I had never heard of the name of any typeface. I knew about lettering, and I liked doing like Art Deco, alphabets and stuff, you know, Art Nouveau, that kind of stuff. But the idea of a font named Helvetica, this was like a complete introduction to what graphic design is, what the impact of taking a word and setting it in lowercase and turning a garbage truck into a sanitation vehicle.

And to this day, those trucks are white, and they say sanitation in lowercase Helvetica. And that was a turning point for me. I started writing everything in lowercase, you know, I tried to make my handwriting look like Helvetica. I did double story A's. I was like so excited when I did move to New York to actually see the sanitation trucks that had changed my life.

Amber Asay (5:09)

What a great story. I love that. That's such a memorable moment for you. You attended Cooper Union for the advancement of science and art, graduating in 1985 Can you share some insights into your experience at Cooper Union and how it shaped your approach to design?