To celebrate finishing the Ampersand project, I made & pretzels with my friend James the baker!

Some highlights:

The whole batch:

An interrobang, just for good measure:

Here are a few videos made by other folks about my project.

A video from the DART Program, about the lovely sounds my windchimes make:

Molly McLeod’s Ampersand Project from DART Program on Vimeo.

A video made by Lily Page to promote the Lemelson Center:

Molly & Lemelson from Lilly Page on Vimeo.

The Ampersand Project is my Division III (i.e. thesis project) at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA.  I wrote and designed three distinct but complementary books about typography, centering around ampersand (the & symbol).  I also created an educational, interactive art installation all over campus.

I believe the ampersand is a fun, accessible entry point for learning about typography.  The ampersand has a rich history, and can take many different forms depending on the time period and font style it’s from.  The books are for sale in the Ampersand Project store.

The CNC (Computer Numerical Control) Plasma Cutter in the Lemelson Center is what made this whole project possible.  It was easier than it looks to operate (thanks to the watchful eyes of Don and Glenn).

Video of it in action here: