Carl’s

The dominance of lettering in Cottingham’s work and the care he takes in distinguishing type styles are partially due to his earlier involvement in advertising. His preferred subject matter is building exteriors. Carl’s features the New York City storefront of Carl’s Cut Rate Cosmetics. To the artist, fragmentation is both method and meaning. The tightly cropped composition emphasizes curvilinear patterns and rhythms. The viewer’s eye is directed above the ground floor to the architectural features that are usually overlooked (or rather, underlooked). Cottingham’s work celebrates the American urban landscape and he streamlined design of the 1930s, ‘40s, and ‘50s.