Department of Typography & Graphic Communication awarded Queen's Anniversary Prize

Friday, 25 November 2011

Head of Department Professor Paul Luna, Professor Sue Walker and Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Tony Downes

The University is delighted to announce that the Department of Typography & Graphic Communication has been awarded a distinguished Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education. The department has a world-wide reputation for research and teaching and learning, in what can be broadly summarised as ‘design for reading'.

Congratulations to everyone in the Department of Typography & Graphic Communication, especially as Reading is the first ever institution to have won a Queen's Anniversary Prize focused on typographic research. The official announcement was made at St James's Palace on Thursday 24 November, and the presentations by the Queen will take place during a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace in February 2012.

The Prizes are the most prestigious form of national recognition open to a UK academic or vocational institution, recognising and celebrating the outstanding work of higher and further education institutions and the impact that they have.

The Department of Typography & Graphic Communication conducts research through history, theory and practice in information design, book design and typeface design and works closely with, and informs, industry, government and business. The Department has pioneered research in the history of graphic communication and in so doing has raised the profile of its exceptional Lettering, Printing and Graphic Design collections that in turn underpin a pioneering hands-on approach to teaching and learning.

Professor Tony Downes, Acting Vice-Chancellor said: "Typography & Graphic Communication has long been one of our world-class departments. This award recognises both excellent research, which makes a real difference in the real world, and an unparalleled student experience that leads to rewarding employment prospects. It is a great example of a Department doing all the right things."

Head of the Department, Professor Paul Luna, commented: "We are very proud to have won a Queen's Anniversary Prize. Our submission, ‘Design for reading: teaching and research in typography and graphic communication', has been awarded a 2011 Prize in recognition of the excellence and world-wide reputation of our research and teaching and learning. The Design & Print Studio's unique work with our students was also part of the submission." 

The University has won a Queen's Anniversary Prize on three previous occasions:

• In 1998 Reading received a prize for its work on the dynamics of theatre performance in Shakespeare's time, done collaboratively with the Globe Theatre in London
• In 2005, the Department of Meteorology was awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize for its training and research in weather, climate and physical oceanography
• In 2009 the Department of Archaeology was awarded the Prize for uniquely combining ground-breaking research, enterprise and teaching in the field

See photos from the Department and its collections on Flickr >>>