Sunday Type: paragraph type
strength of character
An exceptionally hectic week meant foregoing the usual mid-week post. Hopefully back to normal now, and I can finish the next instalment of the Type History series, Why Type Matters, and more. OK, sit back, relax and enjoy. First up is some beautifully photographed found type. Richard Roche has scoured the Web for the very best found type photos. This stunning shot was taken by David John Earls:
My favourite letter is a. There’s so much scope for creativity with this first letter of the alphabet. I particularly like the lowercase a in Marat, so I decided to cut one from sticky-back vinyl and put it on my front door.
My scalpel work doesn’t really do it justice, but it’s still nice to come home to.
Jon Tan has written a great article on The Paragraph in Web Typography & Design. Well worth a read. Well researched, and plenty of practical examples.
New Type
Exemplar designed by Göran Söderström has been brewing for quite some time. Now it’s available for public consumption:
Well worth printing out the Exemplar PDF specimen.
Really like this illustration:
Be sure to check out T. Lobe’s Flickr for more type goodness.
Rub me down
A great piece by Steven Heller for Design Observer: a homage to rub-down lettering.
Some great Letraset ‘collage’ from Christopher Palazzo:
Last week I mentioned Gemma O’Brien’s post on Body Type. Here’s the making of video:
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=Nz3lXu3VxVgThis made me smile. Simon Pascal Klein‘s lunch. I should try this with Japanese alphabet spaghetti.
Some lovely stationery from Mr Boddigton:
Via Design Sponge.
While you’re waiting for the grand opening of the iLT t-shirt shop (coming soon, I promise), you might like to try this one on for size:
Thanks to Vivien. And from the people that brought you the Huge Type Looks Sweet t-shirt, here’s the punctuation t:
Sunday Links
Ink This, Face Lift Showcase—via TypeForYou
Type t-shirts—David Airey
For All Seasons—animated type
Dot Grid Book—via Inspirationbit
Remembering How Many Cups in a Gallon
Oded Ezer‘s typographic landscape populated with Hebrew letters:
via John D Berry
Type Tip
When setting a word in italic that trails with an apostrophe-s (possessive s), make sure to set the apostrophe and the s, not in italic, but in roman.
Love at first sight
I’ve fallen for a typeface that hasn’t even been published yet. It’s Skolar by David Březina, designed for scholarly journals. Low contrast, serifs that aren’t shy, and some beautifully shaped counters.
It has an odd, quirky italic, but the more I look at it, the more I like it; and it’s a beautiful accompaniment to the roman. It should hit the streets later this year. When it does, I’ll be sure to let you know. I’m at the front of the queue!
For iLT’s wonderful Spanish readers, there’s a great article on the making of Relato Serif from Emtype. I wonder if there’s an English translation of this article somewhere? (a terribly unsubtle hint). Also some iLT articles in Español—in case you missed them.
Kris Sowersby recently reviewed FF Balance by the late, great Evert Bloemsma. I’ve since found this nice interview with Evert Bloemsma on Jon Coltz’s web site. They talk about the wonderful FF Avance.
Today’s Types
FF Kievit by Mike Abbink:
and FB Californian. California Oldstyle was Originally designed by Goudy in 1938. Carol Twombly later digitized the roman; David Berlow added italic and small caps; Jane Patterson did the bold, and In 1999, assisted by Richard Lipton & Jill Pichotta, Berlow designed the black, text, and display weights:
This specimen taken from the free David Berlow Type Specimens PDF.
Crossword Competition—Vol. 2
With the huge success of the first iLT crossword, I’ve decided to make it a fairly regular feature. I’ll also try to compose some easier (concise) versions.
One correct entry will be drawn at random and will win a license for Stefan Hattenbach’s wonderful Anziano. She comes with some particularly lovely small caps, an elegant italic, and some exquisite ornaments.
Even if you don’t win it, I suggest you add Anziano to your type library. Many thanks to Stefan for offering this generous prize.
Almost forgot the actual crossword! Just click here to get started.
Hope that you can enjoy trying to solve it, and that you learn something about type at the same time. If you can’t answer all the clues, then don’t worry—just have a go.
And Finally…
I’m quite far behind responding to emails, so please be patient if you have mailed me. Rest assured, I do read every mail, and I’ll do my level best to get back to you.
Next up is part five of the Type History series. More interviews, prizes, type reviews, and lots more type goodness coming your way soon.
Thanks for reading. Have a great week.
