Need to produce a flyer? Want to draw up a logo for a band? Does your local speed shop need a T-shirt design? Don’t want to use the same old computer fonts? Well, let graphic designer and typography teacher Ivan Castro show you The ABC of Custom Lettering. This practical workbook features easy-to-follow, step-by-step guidance on hand drawing a range of letterforms, from Modern Roman and Gothic to Latin, Script, and Interlocked. It uses traditional instruction methods with a modern twist, and includes gallery sections for inspiration and exercises and projects that enable you to practise your technique.

Ivan Castro is a graphic designer based in Barcelona, Spain, who specializes in calligraphy, lettering, and typography. His work involves everything from advertising to editorial, and from packaging to logo design and gig posters. Although Ivan claims to have no specific style, one could say that he has a strong respect for the history of popular culture. He has been working in the field for 15 years, and has been teaching calligraphy and lettering for 10 years in the main design schools in Barcelona. He travels frequently, holding workshops and giving lectures at design festivals and conferences.

330 pages filled with the history of alphabet, the anatomy of the letterform, and how wood type was made. Personal stories from artists, typographic designers, the new uses of wood type in printing from two university professors, and the story of the world’s largest collector of wood type, Leo Kaplan, the Grandfather of the wood type collage and Dave Greer, the largest collector of rare wood and metal type. 

The book is not available in stores, but can be ordered via gregruffa@aol.com

Second book of Keith Houston after „Shady Characters”. „The Book” is about the paper, ink, thread, glue and board from which a book is made. It’s an amazing travel through history of this 2,000 year-old medium: from tablets and papyrus scrolls to hard covers and paperbacks we have today. It’s a must-have for anyone interested in history of book making, but also for editorial designers and printers.

Renowned typographer and poet Robert Bringhurst brings clarity to the art of typography with this masterful style guide. Combining the practical, theoretical, and historical, this edition is completely updated, with a thorough revision and updating of the longest chapter, “Prowling the Specimen Books”, and many other small but important updates based on things that are continually changing in the field.

The Evolution of Type takes the reader on a journey through the development of type design and typographic style from the mid-15th century to the present day, by way of 100 typefaces. Chosen to represent the key elements of style and form used by the punch cutters, calligraphers and designers of their day, and presented in chronological order according to release date, each typeface is discussed in terms of its origins and its impact on the design and print industry, and latterly the additional considerations for screen use. Versions released in metal-foundry type for hand-setting, as hot-metal type for the monotype and linotype machines, as phototype, and as digital revivals or originals, are covered in detail alongside information about the people responsible for the design and development of each adaptation of the typeface. Key glyphs from each face are annotated to indicate the specific features that mark out how typeface design has evolved over the last 500 or so years, and visual comparisons illustrate how typefaces created years ago have influenced the design of many contemporary releases. For the general reader, this book offers a thorough history of the typefaces we have been reading for decades; for typographers and designers, it is a valuable resource that will help to inform their choice of the most appropriate typeface for a project.

The Geometry of Type explores 100 traditional and modern typefaces in loving detail, with a full spread devoted to each entry. Characters from each typeface are enlarged and annotated to reveal key features, anatomical details, and the finer, often-overlooked elements of type design, which shows how these attributes affect mood and readability. Sidebar information lists the designer and foundry, the year of release and the different weights and styles available, while feature boxes explain the origins and best uses for each typeface, such as whether it is suitable for running text or as a display font for headlines. To help the reader spot each typeface in the wider world, the full character set is shown, and the best letters for identification are highlighted. This beautiful and highly practical work of reference for font spotters, designers and users is a close-up celebration of typefaces and great type design.

Typefaces introduced in this book: Adobe Jenson, Cala, Bembo Book, FF Clifford, FF Scala, Lexicon, Minion, Garamond Premier, MVB Verdigris, Adobe Caslon, Baskerville Original, Mrs Eaves, Plantin, Arnhem, Times New Roman, Le Monde Journal, Bauer Bodoni, ITC Bodoni, H&FJ Didot, Filosofia, Farnham, New Century Schoolbook, Miller, Eames Century Modern, Ingeborg, Melior, Neue Swift, Skolar, Fedra Serif, FF Meta Serif, Doko, Luxury Diamond, Albertus, Modesto, Trajan, Berau Grot, Knockout, FF Bau, Univers, Neue Helvetica, Akkurat, National, Antique Olive, Bell Centennial, News Gothic, Benton Sans, Whitney, Futura ND, Avenir, Gotham, ITC Avant Garde, Calibre/Metric, FF DIN, Interstate, Verlag, Klavika, MVB Solano Gothic, Forza, Gill Sans, FF Yoga Sans, Frutiger, Myriad, Verdana, Syntax, Cronos, TheSans, Auto, Optima, Beorcana, FF Meta, Amplitute, Fedra Sans, FF Dax, FF Balance, Giza, Clarendon, Farao, Heron Serif, Archer, Neutraface Slab, Rockwell, PMN Caecilia, FF Unit Slab, Adelle, Freight Micro, Kinescope, Studio Slant, Radio, Bickham Script, Tangier, Suomi Hand Script, Nitti, Ed Interlock, Bree, Rumbe, Trade Gothic Condensed Bold No. 20, Heroic Condensed, Cabazon, SangBleu, Marian

The Insects Project is a product of a collaborative research aimed at sharing knowledge about Central European typography and promoting design that is sensitive to the needs of all those who are unlucky enough to be native users of Czech, Hungarian, Polish and Slovak.

Perhaps few users of “diacriticless” languages (such as e.g. English) realise how lucky they are to be able to choose from literally thousands of typefaces. Central Europeans, on the other hand, are nowhere near as spoiled for choice, because many fonts available on the market still seem to overlook the specific needs of their knotty languages.

This book contains four articles by invited experts. Each of them presents a historical overview and a guide to good diacritic design practices in particular languages including examples of the most common design problems that were prepared using font samples from young Czech, Polish and Slovak typedesigners.

The book can be downloaded for free at: http://theinsectsproject.eu

Bruce Rogers was a towering figure in the history of graphic arts, and remains one of the most important American book designers of the twentieth century. The unrivaled subtlety of his style also sets apart Rogers’s most widespread accomplishment, the Centaur type. This type was born of the late-nineteenth-century quest to create a modern revival of Nicolas Jenson’s humanist roman of 1470, long held by scholars to be both the origin and the apogee of the Venetian roman, and which has inspired designers from William Morris to Robert Slimbach to attempt types based on Jenson’s graceful proportions, elegant spacing, and evenness of color. None of these succeeded like Bruce Rogers’s Centaur, which stands as a perennial classic, as sublime as it is impossible to replicate.

The Noblest Roman: A History of the Centaur Types of Bruce Rogers chronicles every iteration of Centaur, from the original foundry type cast and acquired for the exclusive use by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, to the type’s conversion to the Monotype machine involving Stanley Morison, and its ultimate adaptation as a digital face. Set in Jerry Kelly’s recent digital rendering of Rogers’s original foundry Centaur, this engaging narrative is the result of significant new research, and is lushly illustrated with original drawings and proofs from the Monotype archives and the Library of Congress, as well as a tipped-in type specimen letterpress printed from the newly recast foundry.

The Noblest Roman: A History of the Centaur Type of Bruce Rogers is 138 pages, including a 16-page analysis of the use of Centaur by the Grabhorn Press of San Francisco, exclusive to the BCC edition. The book measures 7 x 10″, is bound in paper over boards with a letterpress titling label, and is slipcased. Each numbered copy contains a letterpress supplement designed, typeset, and printed by Jerry Kelly.

http://www.bccbooks.org/store/products/the-noblest-roman/

The Serif is the short cross stroke at the beginning and end of letter parts. Its origin in Roman inscription letters is one of the uncharted areas of paleography. In this book the author questions accepted theories as to the serif’s origin, and his own theory with skillful reasoning, detailed illustration, and epigraphic proof.

Demand for copies of The Origin of the Serif has been constant since Fr. Catich published it in 1968. The information found there is not available elsewhere, and Catich’s theory on serif origins is not only original but persuasive. He connects it with a development of the Roman alphabet. Since the edition has been exhausted, Mary W. Gilroy, the Curator of the Catich Gallem', has prepared this new edition for publication.

A reference guide of typographic terms and classification with definitions of form and usage for Latin based writing systems. The TDR is an encyclopedia, listing countless entries on the typographic arts.

http://typedeskref.com/

The Visual History of Type is a comprehensive, detailed survey of the major typefaces produced since the advent of printing with movable type in the mid-fifteenth century to the present day. Arranged chronologically to provide context, more than 320 typefaces are displayed in the form of their original type specimens or earliest printing. Each entry is supported by a brief history and description of key characteristics of the typeface. This book will be the definitive publication in its field, appealing to graphic designers, educators, historians and design students. It will also be a significant resource for professional type designers and students of type. 

About the Author: Paul McNeil is a graphic designer with experience in corporate and brand communications. He is a co-founder of MuirMcNeil, specialising in typography, systems and information design, and works as a Senior Lecturer in Typography at the London College of Communication where he was Course Leader, MA Contemporary Typographic Media from 2010–15.

Theory of Type Design by type designer Gerard Unger is a comprehensive theory of typeface design. This volume consists of 24 chapters, each describing a different aspect of type design, from the influence of language to today’s digital developments, from how our eyes and brain process letterforms to their power of expression.

This book includes more than 200 illustrations and practical examples that illuminate the theoretical material. The terminology is explained in the volume’s extensive glossary.

The theory is internationally orientated and relevant for typography courses, professionals and those with a general interest in text and reading all over the world.

Thinking with Type is the definitive guide to using typography in visual communication, from the printed page to the computer screen. This revised edition includes forty-eight pages of new content, including the latest information on style sheets for print and the web, the use of ornaments and captions, lining and non-lining numerals, the use of small caps and enlarged capitals, as well as information on captions, font licensing, mixing typefaces, and hand lettering. Throughout the book, visual examples show how to be inventive within systems of typographic form—what the rules are and how to break them. Thinking with Type is a type book for everyone: designers, writers, editors, students, and anyone else who works with words. The popular online companion to Thinking with Type (www.thinkingwithtype.com) has been revised to reflect the new material in the second edition.

This special hardback edition is limited to 300 copies. It includes a 24-page Monotype letterpress keepsake booklet, Going with Goudy to Philadelphia, composed, printed in several colors, and signed by Richard Hopkins. Tolbert Lanston and the Monotype is printed in full color, with more than three hundred photos and illustrations, 232 pages, plus several appendices and index.

Tolbert Lanston, at the end of the nineteenth century, was a man obsessed with the idea of creating a machine which would provide automated typesetting yet preserve all the nuances of excellence in typography and fine printing. This also is the story of the man and the company that created and manufactured Monotypes for three-quarters of a century. 

An American Civil War veteran, Lanston has remained a poorly documented hero of the typographic revolution. His Monotype System was the very first digital concept put into daily use in typesetting plants across the globe. The Monotype was a groundbreaking precursor to the computer revolution in the typesetting industry, though it was introduced over seventy years before computerized typesetting systems were developed.

The book can be purchased here. 

Type Directory shows 1,500 typefaces are organized by category – Serif, Sans Serif, Display, Script and Symbols & Dingbats – and subsequently arranged by recognized sub-categories. This allows the reader to make a direct comparison of typefaces with a similar appearance, thus facilitating a deeper understanding of the design and selection process. A visual celebration of the craft, innovation and beauty of these letterforms is presented throughout, from classic typefaces like Garamond, Bodoni and Times through to the contemporary Bliss, Gotham and Meta.

Author Peter Dawson co-founded his design practice, Grade, in 2000. He is a fellow and a former chair and board member of the International Society of Typographic Designers, and has also acted as a visiting typography lecturer at a number of universities. 

Type Specimens introduces readers to the history of typography and printing through a chronological visual tour of the books, posters, and ephemera designed to sell fonts to printers, publishers, and eventually graphic designers.

This richly illustrated book guides design educators, advanced design students, design practitioners, and type aficionados through four centuries of visual and trade history, equipping them to contextualize the aesthetics and production of type in a way that is practical, engaging, and relevant to their practice. 

Fully illustrated throughout with 200 color images of type specimens and related ephemera, the book illuminates the broader history of typography and printing, showing how letterforms and their technologies have evolved over time, inspiring and guiding designers of today.

Know your type: A visual history of fonts and graphic styles: 1628–1938

This book offers a connoisseur’s overview of typeface design, exploring the most elegant fonts from the history of publishing. Taken from a distinguished Dutch collection, this exuberant two-volume edition traces the evolution of the printed letter via exquisitely designed catalogs, showing type specimens in roman, italic, bold, semi-bold, narrow, and broad fonts. Borders, ornaments, initial letters, and decorations are also included, along with lithographic examples, letters by sign writers, inscription carvers, and calligraphers.

The first volume covers pre–20th century typeface specimens, with texts by editor Cees de Jong and collector Jan Tholenaar. The second volume covers the period from 1900 to the mid-20th century, and contains a historical outline by Alston W. Purvis.

Includes exclusive access with TASCHEN keycard to online image library: over 2,400 high-resolution scans of type specimens downloadable for unrestricted use.
 

Typo 9010 unites an encyclopaedic collection of Czech digitized typefaces starting from 1990, a time when computers were starting to replace phototypesetting and copying letters by hand, and ending with 2010, when almost a dozen small type foundries were operating in the country. 

The book captures the most important moments at the oldest Czech type design studio (at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague) and recapitulates the most important milestones in the industry. 

Short texts by Czech and international typographers describing the atmosphere of the times are distributed throughout the book, which aims to present Czech type design and its digital beginnings in as much detail as possible while placing it into an international context.

Concept: Tomáš Brousil
Editor: Petra Dočekalová
Design: Zuzana Lednická, Radek Sidun
Texts: Petr Babák, Filip Blažek, Veronika Burian, Karel Haloun, Ondřej Chorý, Bas Jacobs, Pavel Noga, Jan Solpera, František Štorm

http://www.typo9010.cz/en

How were the first fonts made? Who invented italics? When did we work out how to print in color?

Typographic Firsts charts the formative early history of the printed or typographic book. Many of the standard features of the printed book were designed by pioneering typographers and printers in the latter half of the fifteenth century. Although Johannes Gutenberg is credited with printing the first books with moveable type, at the height of the Renaissance printers and publishers found innovative solutions to replicate the appearance of manuscript books in print and improve on them.

Typographic Firsts is a look at a dozen examples of the early influences and innovations that shaped the printed book and established a typographic canon.

From the technological and practical challenges of polychromatic printing or printing music staves and notes, to the challenges of illustrating books with woodcuts, producing books for children and the design of the first fonts, these stories chart the inventions, innovations and accidents that went into creating the printed book, the world's first revolution in mass communication. The book also covers printing in gold, the first female typographers and the logistics of printing maps.

Typographic Firsts shows how a mixture of happenstance and brilliant technological innovation came together to form the typographic and design conventions of the book we are now familiar with.

• Hardback
• 208 pages, 245 x 190mm
• ISBN: 9781851244737
• Publication March 2019

Combining typefaces is one of the great challenges and, at the same time, a continuing allure for typographers and designers: is it meant to be extravagant or should it only be carried out to a limited degree or, ideally, not at all? Which fonts harmonize with each other, and which don't? Which ones complement each other or even enhance each other? There are few answers to be found in the professional literature.

This handbook demonstrates that it is possible to determine criteria for the combining of typefaces. By looking at the shape of typefaces in detail and creating a revised classification of fonts, it conveys a deeper understanding of the diversity of typefaces and, based on a systematic analysis of analogy and contrast, it establishes the urgently necessary findings required for combining typefaces. An indispensable standard work for typographers and graphic designers.

Explore 100 key concepts, theories, and guidelines that are critical for choosing and using type.

We communicate with text every single day, but what does it mean to really understandtype—to use it with clear intent and purpose? The art and science of typography combines subtle tweaks to line lengths with harmonious combinations of weights and styles; considered typeface pairings with a robust set of alternate characters; exciting technological advances with the realities of font licensing. There are so many ways designers can optimize how text is read and influence the way its message is understood—and yet so many designers miscommunicate without even realizing it.

Richly illustrated and easy to navigate, Universal Principles of Typographypairs clear explanations of each principle with visual examples of it applied in practice. By considering these concepts and examples, you can learn to make more informed, and ultimately better, typography decisions.

Building upon tried-and-tested principles from the world of print through to the very latest advances in browser technology, this book will equip you with everything you need to make the most informed typographic decisions in your design work today.

Often credited with inventing the term "graphic design," W. A. Dwiggins was a quintessential maker — fabricating his own tools, inventing techniques, and experimenting with design in areas as wide-ranging as modular ornament, stamps, currency, books, kites, marionettes, and theatrical sets and lighting. More than any of his contemporaries, he united the full range of applied arts into a single profession — designer. Despite this, a thorough study of Dwiggins has never been published. Until now.

W. A. Dwiggins: A Life in Design offers an engaging and inspiring overview of the designer’s wide-ranging creative output and lasting impact on the graphic arts. Bruce Kennett’s careful research, warm prose, and inclusion of numerous personal accounts from Dwiggins’s friends and contemporaries portray not only a brilliant designer, but a truly likable character.

The book can be ordered from the shop of the Letterform Archive. 

Typography is what comes between the author and the reader. This is as true on the web as it is in any other medium. If a text has anything at all significant to say, it needs a typographer’s care, which will in turn be repaid by the reader’s attention. If you design websites or use CSS then you are a typographer whether you know it or not.

This book is a practical guide and companion reference to all aspects of typography on the web. It deftly combines implement­ation details with typographic theory, and is ideal for designers, developers and anyone else involved in the process of creating a website.

The book is available ebook and paperback book. 

Quote

Almost 40, Xavier Dupré is one of the most prolific French type designers, whose work is internationally distributed. His typefaces, featured in eminent foundries’ catalogues (Emigre, FontBureau, FontFont, Typofonderie) demonstrate a personal quest for type design, fueled with calligraphic and humanistic influences, but also with a sensitivity permeable to various locations where he settled his activity.

An interview by Julien Gineste
Introduction by Rudy Vanderlans
Mostly unpublished material
Bilingual (fr/eng), two-colour printing, 128 pages, 24 × 15 cm