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History of Type

Letter Form Project | The Printing Press | TypeStyles | History of Type | Letter Archetecture

Oldstyle – Claude Garamond Biography
born c. 1480 in Paris, France died 1561 in Paris, France
– type founder, publisher, punch cutter, type designer.

Claude Garamond (ca. 1510) trains as a punch cutter with Simon de Colines in Paris. 1520: 1540: King Francis I commissions Garamond to cut a Greek type. Garamond’s ensuing Grec du Roi is used by Robert Estienne in three sizes exclusively for the printing of Greek books. From 1545 onwards: Garamond also works as a publisher, the first book he published is "Pia et Religiosa Meditatio" by David Chambellan. The books are set using typefaces designed by Garamond. The typefaces Garamond produced between 1530 and 1545 are considered the typographical highlight of the 16th century.
His fonts has influenced typeface developments from the time of its creation to the present. Since its appearance, Garamond has been one of the most frequently used text fonts and is still in use today.

Modern – Giambattista Bodoni Biography
born 26. 2. 1740 in Saluzzo, Piedmont, Italy, died 30. 11. 1813 in Parma, Italy
– engraver, type designer, typographer, printer, publisher

Giambattista Bodoni (1740-1813) was called the King of Printers and the Bodoni font owes its creation in 1767 to his masterful cutting techniques. The Bodoni font distinguishes itself through the strength of its characters and embodies the rational thinking of the Enlightenment. The new typefaces displaced the Old Face and Transitional styles and was the most popular typeface until the mid-19th century. Bodoni's influence on typography was dominant until the end of the 19th century and even today inspires new creations. Working with this font requires care, as the strong emphasis of the vertical strokes and the marked contrast between the fine and thick lines lessens Bodoni's legibility, and the font is therefore better in larger print with generous spacing. The Bodoni of Morris F. Benton appeared in 1911 with the American Typefounders.

Slab serif – Rudolf Wolf Biography
born 1895 in Hechingen, Germany, died 1942 in Frankfurt, Germany
– Advertising manager, type designer, and teacher.

RudolfWold studied at the university in Frankfurt am Main. Ph. D. In 1922–42: works as advertising manager for D. Stempel AG in Frankfurt am Main, where he is responsible for type design. Font: Memphis (1930). Because of the geometric basis of its forms, Memphis is often thought of as a font for technical fields, making a rational, purposeful impression. This emphasis on objectivity is well-suited to technical texts, but Memphis is appropriate for any text which should exhibit a clear, neutral character.

Sans serif – Tom Carnase Biography
born 1939
– Typographer, type designer, teacher, graphic designer.

1959: after completing his studies, Carnase joins the agency Sudler & Hennessey Inc. In 1979: opens the Carnase Computer Typography studio. Besides type design, Carnase has designed graphics for packaging, exhibitions, corporate identities and logos for numerous clients, including ABC, CBS, Coca-Cola, Condé Nast Publications, Doubleday Publishing and NBC. He has held teaching positions at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio, the Pratt Institute in New York, the Herron School of Art in Indiana, the Parson’s School of Design in New York, the Cleveland Institute of Art in Ohio, the University of Monterrey in Mexico, and the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, among others He created ITC Avant Garde Gothic fontwhich is a geometric sans serif type, that is, the basic shapes were made with a compass and T-square. The design is reminiscent of the work from the 1920s German Bauhaus movement. Its letterforms are built of circles and clean lines and highly effective for headlines and short texts.

Script
The script category includes all those typefaces that appear to have been hand lettered with a calligraphy pen or brush. They are fancy and should never be set as long blocks of text and never all CAPS! Since, all scripts and italics have a slant and or flowing form, it is important to remember never to combine two different italic fonts or two different scrips, or an italic with a script. Doing so will create a conflict - there are too many similarities. It might even make it had for the viewer to read the type. But do use script fonts for Headers and Titles.


Hermann Zapf Biography
born 1918 in Nuremberg, Germany
– book designer, creator of alphabets of texfaces for books, magazines and newspapers.

Through his prolific output of type designs and publications Hermann Zapf has influenced and enriched type and typographic design throughout the world over six decades. His designs are contemporary interpretations of traditional classical forms and ideals.
His type designs are admired the world over: people everywhere use his types when transferring their thoughts to paper or screen.

Zapf Chancery font is a work of German designer Hermann Zapf. It was named after a typeface used in Anglo-Saxon lands during the Renaissance as well as inspired by such scripts. This font makes it possible to give printed items an individual character. The handwriting of the designer can be seen in the forms of this classic, elegant font.

Decorative
These fonts are easy to identify. They don't look like regular fonts because they tend to be very unusual. Decorative fonts are great, they are fun, distinctive, easy to use. Oftentimes, there is a decorative font for any whim you wish to express. Depending on how you use them, decorative can carry obvious emotions. So because they are distinctive, thief powerful use is limited.

Zuzana Licko biography
– type designer, publisher, and founder of Emigre Fonts

Zuzana Licko answers common questions about Emigre Fonts:
In 25 words or less, What is a typeface?
A typeface is the ornamental manifestation of the alphabet.
If the alphabet conveys words, a typeface conveys their tone, style, and attitude.

How did you start your career in typeface design?
My formal education was in graphic design, during which time I marveled at typefaces. I realized the power that typefaces have on a typographic piece of design; how picking the appropriate typeface has a tremendous effect on the resulting typography. Take a logo for example, often times the design of a few alphabetic characters will constitute the entire logo design.
But the process of designing typefaces remained a mystery to me until I got my hands on a Macintosh computer in 1984. Of course, back then the technology was very primitive, and easy to grasp. And, as it turns out, bitmap fonts were the perfect place for me to start learning about type design because I love the building block approach. From then on, my experience and skill with ever more sophisticated typeface designs evolved along with the Macintosh's ability to produce more complex fonts programs.

How did the Emigre Fonts foundry begin?
Prior to the Macintosh computer, the design of typefaces had existed for centuries as an exclusive discipline reserved for specialists; today the personal computer provides the opportunity to create customized alphabets with an increased potential for personalization and expression. When we began using the Macintosh computer, my husband, Rudy VanderLans , had recently started publishing Emigre magazine. Our design of custom fonts for Emigre magazine grew out of our need for unique and more effective fonts than those originally available for the Macintosh in 1984. As graphic designers, we also enjoyed the new found ability to test and implement the faces directly within our design work.

How do you get ideas for new typeface designs?
Most of my inspiration comes from the particular medium that I'm involved with at the time. I search out a problem that needs to be addressed or a unique result that a production method can yield.
How do you judge the validity of a new or experimental typeface design?
Design is about creating something new each time we approach a problem, even if it's the same problem. Over time, different solutions are required to address the same design problem because the context changes over time and results in shifting of meaning. Thus, the "same old solution" tends to become boring over time and leads the audience to lose interest.
In addition, new technologies and environments arise to present new problems for the designer to address. The most successful experimental typeface designs are often those that address the new needs of a new, yet unchartered technology.

Use of Type: Be conscious
To use type effectively, you have to be conscious. By that I mean you must keep you eyes open, you must notice details, you must try to state you problems in letter forms. When you see a font that appeals to you strongly, use it in your design. Make your design follow the letters forms.
And spend a few minutes and look through a magazine. Try to categorize the typefaces you see. Many of them will not fit neatly into a single pot, but that is ok – choose the category that seems closest. The point is that you are looking at letter forms, which is absolutely critical if you are going to combine them effectively with images to communicate a message.