As part of my literature review, I’m exploring two distinct literatures. The first is about Indigenous sovereignty, with a particular focus on language revitalization and reclamation. The second is about type design, specifically literature concerning current methodologies and technologies of typeface production and the challenges of creating multi-script fonts.
I’ve also been refining my proposal as my second semester ends, and I focus on my MRP full-time.
Before reviewing the literature on typeface design, I wanted to brush up on the history of typography. As a graphic designer, I am familiar with the Eurocentric academic history of graphic design. Typical design history textbooks will cover the history of writing, paper, books and illuminated manuscripts as a prologue before the actual narrative begins with the advent of the printing press in Germany. I chose to read Robin Kinross’ Modern Typography: An Essay in Critical History, which also presents a Eurocentric history, namely a history of Roman typography starting in the late seventeenth century. This book provides a practical, well-researched timeline, albeit colonial, from which I can draw comparisons as I outline a history of syllabic writing systems. Kinross’ exploration of modernism also provides a valuable record for better understanding Dori Tunstall’s critique of modernism and the Bauhaus in Decolonizing Design.
With an understanding and appreciation of the historical context, I started to explore the theory and techniques of designing typefaces. Below are resources that I’ve found valuable on my journey of learning typeface design this year.
Books
One of the first books I would recommend is Designing Type by Karen Cheng. It has been a modern classic since its 2005 publication. The book analyzes, compares, and organizes upper- and lowercase letters, numbers, punctuation, and diacritics in groups of similar glyphs. The second edition contains an extended section on theory, which makes it a perfect introduction for students who are new to type design.
One of my favourite type design books that I read for my directed reading course is How to Create Typefaces: From Sketch to Screen by Cristóbal Henestrosa, José Scaglione and Laura Meseguer. The authors have written different sections of the book, and the distinct perspectives and opinions help one find one’s unique typographic voice. The section on the calligraphic roots of typography explains the complex topic clearly and thoroughly, with lots of visuals to illustrate the theory. How to Create Typefaces also provides plenty of helpful information about font production without describing the features or nuances of any particular software tool. Unfortunately, the English edition is out of print and unavailable online.
A book that takes an opposite approach and leans into the software side of things is Designing Fonts: An Introduction to Professional Type Design by Chris Campe and Ulrike Rausch. The book is quite fun and visually oriented, with doodles in the margins and software-specific guidelines for creating fonts using Glyphs for macOS. It also has a workshop section with eight exercises for creating different styles of typefaces.
I’m still in the process of finding resources related to non-Latin-type design and harmonizing writing systems. Design Regression by David Březina is a mini-journal of multi-script typography and legibility.
Video tutorials
While I prefer books as a way to learn, video tutorials are helpful, especially when learning new software tools. Here are a few recommendations that I’ve been watching (or have on my watch list):
- Charles Nix of Monotype has four courses on LinkedIn Learning (previously Lynda.com). He is an excellent teacher, and his tutorials have made me feel at home in the Glyphs app.
- Type Design School by Lynne Yun is a fantastic complement to the Charles Nix videos mentioned above.
- Studio Ostendo is slowly releasing its Type Design Masterclass for free via its YouTube Channel.
Everything else
The type design community is incredibly helpful, and beyond books, there are plenty of resources available online. Typedesignresources.com is a community website with links to the best tutorials, tools, and other materials available for professionals and students of type design.
Featured image: A spread from How to Create Typefaces: From Sketch to Screen. Source: TypeTogether