Lettera

I came across a really interesting series of books on typefaces/lettering in two different places online recently and decided to investigate further. The four-volume series was called Lettera, A standard book of fine lettering, written or, perhaps more precisely, curated by Armin Haab (with Alex Stocker for volume 1 and with Walter Haettenschweiler for volumes 2, 3 and 4), and published in Switzerland by Arthur Niggli. (Arthur Niggli published and continues to publish great books on typography by Karl Gerstner, Gerard Unger, Adrian Frutiger, Armin Hofmann, Josef Müller-Brockmann and Jost Hochuli among others). The first volume is in its 9th edition, the first being in 1954. The books are a curious collection of examples of a wide range of typographic styles, with a heavy leaning towards lettering. Still, the mix of examples is hard to justify in the groupings that they are in. But, perhaps not having seen a copy in real life one shouldn’t judge; and the individual examples are rather fascinating regardless of order or context.

Filed under: Books, Reference, Typefaces, Typography

Aldo Novarese

Aldo Novarese is someone I meant to post about some time ago, as his incredibly prolific type-design career spanned over 50 years (into the 1990’s) and produced over 70 typefaces (over 200 if we count the various weights & styles). His typefaces helped shape the visual landscape of the 1950s and beyond, with such classic faces as Eurostile, Stop, and ITC Novarese. The Microgramma/Eurostile typeface has become synonymous with Mid-Century Modernism. Much like his contemporary Roger Excoffon (in charge of the Fonderie Olive type foundry) Novarese led the prominent Italian foundry Nebiolo and left a similar mark on the world of typography.

Filed under: Designers, People, Reference, Typefaces, Typography