Marian Bantjes.

I first saw Marian’s work when I was working at BBDO. On my way from Grand Central Terminal, I often walked past Saks Fifth Avenue. One day, I noticed that their window displays had stellar vinyl lettering representing various elements in their stores.

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Now, I check a variety of design blogs throughout my day, and luckily Marian and her phenomenal calligraphy got blogged about. I looked up her other work and became smitten. I am a huge fan of calligraphy and art nouveau, and Marian has an appreciation for letter arts and a fluidity of line that is, well, perfect, really. I’ve seen a bunch of people imitate her, and I can always pick them out. They’re just not quite on her level. She’s the best.

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And charts… you all know how I feel about a well-designed chart, right? (quick answer: I freakin’ love them.) She designed maybe the greatest chart ever. I have no idea what it’s for, but if I could ever get my hands on a print of it, I would be ecstatic. Perhaps I would even swoon and be in dire need of a fainting couch. That’s how much I love this chart.

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