Computer Arts Projects issue 97

When, in 1936, the legendary type designer Eric Gill said, “There are now about as many different varieties of letters as there are different kinds of fools”, he was, of course, passing judgement on a typographic industry a million miles away from today’s digitally driven design world. But what would Gill make of type design in the 21st century, where software does much of the hard work and digital foundries pump out an almost endless supply of new fonts every week?

Chances are he’d have been staggered by the sheer number of fonts in circulation, but amazed at the quality of a lot of the typefaces in popular use, many of which give even his own Gill Sans a run for its money.

Given the sheer size and breadth of the type industry today, whatever Gill would make of it, and the staggering amount of genuine talent pushing the art ever onwards, Computer Arts Projects is taking the opportunity to have an in-depth look at the art of type design, taking in everything from past classics to today’s freshest new work.

From solving the difficult process of matching the right typeface to the right job, to successfully managing your font collection and creating your own fantastic display fonts, we’ve worked with some of the leading names in type design to bring you this packed issue. Hope you enjoy it.

Dom Hall, Editor

IN THE MAG

FEATURES

Showcase
The latest developments in typeface design from some leading independent font foundries

Type: A user’s guide
Choosing the right typeface for the right job is never an easy process. Use our easy-to-follow guide to make sure your face always fits

Design legends
How Frederic William Goudy, Jan Tschichold and Bruce Rogers developed some of the world’s best-known typefaces

Fresh off the slab
Love them or hate them, slab serifs are once again enjoying their time in the sun. Typevents’ Caroline Archer finds out why…

PROFILES

Alan Fletcher
Alan Fletcher was one of the UK’s most important designers, combining fine art and typography. We look back at his life and career

Fenotype
Emil Bertell, the designer behind one of Europe’s most innovative foundries on the “difficult and strange” art of typography

Stefan Gandl
German type designer Stefan Gandl talks to us about letterpress, fonts and The Beatles

TUTORIALS

Create a display font
Innovative German foundry Cape Arcona guides you through the process of creating a versatile and elegant display font

Maximum OpenType
Find out how to make the most of OpenType fonts in Adobe InDesign CS2

Handmade letterforms
Take type to the next level through a mixture of grid-based digital typography and hands-on craft techniques

Three-dimensional type
Find out how to take your typography into another dimension and make it really leap off the page using 3D software and Photoshop

Font management
Keeping track of your fonts can be tricky. We show you how to keep them under control

ON THE CD
This issue’s CD includes 190 free fonts, font creation and management trial software, and more.

EXCLUSIVE
Free stencil
This issue Computer Arts Projects has teamed up with noted US typographer Jeff Levine and turned his bold, solid, art-deco flavoured Parkitecture font into an amazing, easy-to-use stencil.

Find out more about Jeff and his fonts at www.myfonts.com/foundry/jnlevine