Nicholas Benson


Biography


Nicholas Benson is the owner of the John Stevens Shop in Newport, Rhode Island. Founded in 1705, the shop specializes in the design and carving of lettering in stone. He attended the School of Design in Basel, Switzerland in 1985 for an intensive foundation study of calligraphy and letter form design. In 1993 he took over ownership and management of the shop.


His work includes the design and carving of inscriptions on many national civic memorials. He has also designed and carved inscriptions for many notable Universities, Institutions and prominent private families. In 2007 Benson received the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship. In 2010 Benson was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.


In 2013 he began designing and carving symbolic texts in contemplation of the mathematic and informational languages used to communicate in the Information Age.


He lives in Jamestown, RI with his wife Alix and their children, Hope and Henry.