The historic individuality of Detroit's faded neighborhoods is preserved in characters, literally — in the fonts lining the vintage signs and hand-painted advertisements of small businesses. That is, ...

Dan Kamba and Chuck Wilmarth are debating how to spell Oscar Mayer wiener. The “i” should be before the “e,” says Kamba, co-owner of Southwest Signs in the Clearing neighborhood, but Wilmarth, the ...

Hand-painted signs are increasingly common, and this old-school style of art-meets-commerce hasn’t seen this much action since the 1940s. “I think people are looking for authentic, creative signs,” ...

Craftsmanship and economics combine to keep the city's tradition of distinctive hand-painted signs alive in the digital age. Kathleen Rooney takes her walking seriously, and so does her friend ...