TypeCon2012: MKE SHFT

The Society of Typographic Aficionados will bring TypeCon2012: MKE SHFT to Milwaukee, Wisconsin-July 31st-August 5th, 2012.

The theme of this year's conference is a clever play on several words and related concepts.

MKE is the shorthand code for Milwaukee County's General Mitchell International Airport and visually suggests the word 'Make.' SHFT stands for 'Shift'-dropping its vowel to relate to the previous abbreviation.

Putting the two together, they forged the phrase 'Make Shift'-which also works on several levels.

'Make' reflects the creation of things, including type. 'MKE' is the host city, an industrial hub which has a deep rooted history of making things.

'Makeshift' implies improvisation, creativity, and the temporary or ephemeral nature of things-such as is the TypeCon event itself.

'Shift' is a change in direction, speaking to the continuous movement from letterpress to hot type to cold type to the digital desktop to the web.