Archive for the 'typography' Category

Nice overview of recently released projects, and a pleasant side-interview on the Large Hebrew.

According to Paul Shaw, Dwiggins' first design was actually the transitional Boylston, but Metro was the first to be commercially released (and largely ignored).

"Every month, we will make one volume (a year’s worth of pub lic a tions) avail able through the Fonts.com blog. There are, how ever, a couple of caveats. First, the files are big – as in “way big.” The low-resolution files can be as big as 18 MB and the high-resolution files are down right huge at over 85 MB in some cases. Second, they are not per fect. The ori ginal doc u ments were some times faded, cracked or torn. That com bined with a semi-automated scan ning pro cess (over 9,000 pages scaned) res ul ted in some unavoid able “char ac ter” traits. The final caveat is that the above plan could change depend ing on audi ence interest level (or lack thereof). So, if you love it, let us know."

"Vaughan Oliver is one of the great (music) designers. His work is highly original and often breathtakingly beautiful. Probably best known for his work for The Pixies and Cocteau Twins on the 4AD label, Oliver’s designs for Scott Walker, His Name Is Alive, Heidi Berry and many other lesser known names is just as remarkable. For someone who claims to have been uninspired by typography at college, his use of type is a joy. In its gestural expressiveness it focuses and enlivens each design with tremendous inventiveness. Oliver’s work often foregrounds dark images produced by photographers who are essential collaborators in the creative process (key names include Simon Larbalestier, Nigel Grierson and Marc Atkins). Also central to his process is a willingness to experiment and a deep engagement with the music. The result is work that is passionate, elegant and highly influential."

"Around 1994, he started developing Verdana, a revolutionary font for having prevailed over technical constraints of that time, like coarse computer screen resolution. To hear Carter recall it, it was a pivotal moment: People were on the brink of reading as much — or more — on screen than on paper. And that transition has had a profound effect on the design process."

text-rendering css property that seems to mostly work just in safari.

In this article we’ll give you a look behind the scenes of OpenType substitution features — a general rather than comprehensive overview as the subject is simply too vast. We’ll start casually and work our way to more complex features and ideas. All examples that we will discuss should be considered starting points, just to pique your interest. Read on and find out that it’s really not difficult!

"Premiéra is a book typeface specifically designed to work in small sizes. It is available in 3 weights: the ‘Book’ for main text demands and two styles (Bold and Italic) to create different kind of emphasis. A strong x-height and short ascender/descender make this very legible and elegant typeface very suitable for use in books and newspapers. The idea for Premiéra comes from a demand on developing a typeface that works very well in small prints. Its main features, straight lines and sharp forms, developed through a process of testing readability in very small print sizes. The result is a typeface with a strong personality whether you read it in small or in bigger size."

"This Web Museum is established for the purpose of educating the general public, and the next generation, on the beauties of wood types and engraved blocks. Our mission is to gather, save, preserve, and interpret wood types and information about them."

"Inspired by both grotesque and humanist models, it's clean and prudent with an warm, friendly tone."

"When he was a child, Martin McClellan would sneak out into the garage where his father kept a hobby print shop. He'd spin the flywheel on the 19th century Golding Pearl press, pumping his leg on the treadle (cast iron in the shape of an ornate capital G) to achieve a great momentum. He'd jump on the treadle and ride it up and down until the energy dissipated and the ride slowed to a stop. To this day looking at great typography gives him an equivalent thrill. He's awkwardly utopian about design. He lives in Seattle."

"The typeface should have 'the bold simplicity of the authentic lettering of the finest periods' Pick wrote to Johnston. It should also, he told him, be easy to read from a moving train and in bad lighting, be noticeably up-to-date with the times, and yet also be completely different from anything found on other shops and signage. Finally, in true Frank Pick style, Johnston was told that each letter should be 'a strong and unmistakeable symbol.'"

Overview of most of the current options for web typography.