On 25 May 2018, the new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force. That's why we've expanded our privacy policy. We take the protection of your personal data very seriously. We treat your personal data confidential and according to the legal data protection regulations and this Privacy Policy. The use of our website is usually possible without providing personal data. Personal data, such as names, addresses or e-mail addresses, are always provided on a voluntary basis if possible. Those data will not be passed on to third parties without your explicit permission. However, we would like to point out that data transmissions via internet (e.g. e-mail communication) cannot be entirely secure and may have security vulnerabilities. A complete protection of personal details against unauthorized access by third parties is not possible.

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Source e-Recht24.de
English version by Translation Fritz

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All the information that the customer transfers will only be used at the online shop fonts4ever for processing the customer's orders. All information is handled in strict confidence. Information is only transferred to other parties (i.e. shipping companies) when it is necessary for the order processing. The order information will be encrypted and securely transmitted, we are not responsible for data security during the online transfer (e.g. due to a technical error of the provider) or for a potential criminal access to files of our internet presence by third parties. Customer log in information transferred to the customer on request is handled in strict confidence by the customer, because we do not take any responsibility for the use of this information.

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With judgement from May 12, 1998 »312 0 85/98 - Responsibility for links« the district court of Hamburg decided that one is responsible for the content of the linked web pages. This can only be avoided by explicitly dissociating oneself from the content of this pages. We therefore explicitly dissociate ourselves from the content of any linked web pages on this website. This statement is valid for all links on our web pages.

Hamburg, 23 May, 2018

»Petras Script«, the first digital script font created by the calligrapher Petra Beiße, has, for many years, met with worldwide success. Now the font is complemented with an alternate character set, which gives designers more flexibility and adds a personal touch to the font. Furthermore Elsner+Flake extended the characterset of both weights to Europa Plus layout. Petra Beiße has resided for a long time in Wiesbaden, Germany, where she is working as a renowned calligrapher. It is rare that any of her scripts are transferred into digital format and sold worldwide as fonts. Because »Petras Script« became such a huge success, she decided to release Casanova Script Pro. Further information about Petra Beiße and her present workshops can be found under www.handlettering.de.

In 2014, the TV Nord was revised stylistically and expanded to incorporate all (European-Latin languages). As part of this effort, further condensed cuts were added.

This new design came into being as part of a complete overhaul of the visual image of the broadcasting station. This became necessary because, founded in 1954, it incorporated the stations of the East German states Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (1992) and Brandenburg (1997) after the re-unification of Germany. The Hamburg advertising agency DMC Group developed a new and unified image for the broadcasting station which is in existence to this day. The logotype was developed from the capitals of the font too.

The typeface TV Nord relates to the design of the Trade Gothic and similar American sans serif typefaces of the early part of the last century. Its development concerns itself as much with good legibility for print, as it does for the reproduction on TV screens, which among others, is achieved through its high x-height.

The father of Swiss cursive writing, the Schweizer Schulschrift »Basisschrift« and »ABC Schulschrift« , is no longer with us. He passed away in his 92nd year after a life of great productivity.

Following his training in typesetting and after a few semesters of studying Typography and Graphics he worked as a commercial graphic artist. From 1950 until his retirement in 1986, he taught Typography and Drawing at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Zürich. While he was teaching, he published a book in three languages: »Die Schriftentwicklung/The Development of Script and Type/Le développement des caractères« in 1959 and whose reissue by Niggli Publishers is still available. The Spanish edition is called »La evolución de la letra« and was published by Campgràfic Editors, Valencia, in 2012.

Hans Eduard Meier gained his reputation with the development of the Sans-Serif typeface Syntax which, thanks to its roots in the Renaissance Antiqua, created a brave counter design to the then popular form concepts of Helvetica and Akzidenz Grotesk. The Syntax typeface, slightly tilted, and drawn in the tradition of the humanistic renaissance, entices not only because of its sympathetic, warm character, but it distinguishes itself by its clarity and readability. This is what made it a success and a stylistic leader for many of the type designs of the last decades.

In the course of the development of the Schweizer Schulschrift, whose exclusive right of distribution he gave to us, I visited Hans in 2004 in Obstalden, where he then lived. He shared a small house with his wife Elisabeth in which a cobbler had once lived and worked. The house was »stuck« to a steep hillside and could only be accessed on foot from the road above. In this magical house, Hans showed me many details which he himself had restored with much love and expertise. His study was furnished with a daybed, a small desk and his computer work station on which he worked every day on his type designs up to the time when he moved to Horgen in 2013. When he wanted to relax, he looked out of the nearby window onto a series of waterfalls and the Churfirsten Mountains.

In this manner he worked off and on, always following »his language of form« on different typographic ideas some of whose results can also be found in our type offerings. In his own personal style, with the same intensity with which he had restored his house, he developed the antiqua typeface Barbedor in 1984; for the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH) the typeface Oberon in 1992; and for the International Typeface Corporation the ITC Syndor (1992). He designed a typeface for bank notes for the Swiss National Bank in 1994. Between the years 1995 and 2000 the Linotype-Syntax typeface families were created and, coincidentally, the original Syntax Grotesk was reworked. He designed the typeface Elysa, named for his second wife, for Elsner+Flake in 2002. As early as 2001 he began working on the development of an innovative typographic concept in order to retire the traditional »Schnürlischrift« which was then offered exclusively in Swiss primary schools and replace it with a new methodology of teaching and a language of forms which would build successively one upon the other.

In this way an exclusive cooperation with Elsner+Flake came into being with the goal of offering user-specific variations and a number of ligatures for teachers and students. The typeface Gesta came out in 2004. It is supposed to function as a pattern for an antiqua which can be embroidered and which he designed for his daughter, Brita Meoli-Meier, a needle crafts teacher. The font version of the Gesta typeface was offered by Elsner+Flake in 2013.

The last projects Hans Eduard Meier worked on were the tyefaces Meier Kapitalis and Parnassia (manufactured exclusively 2013 for hot metal matrices, see Parnassia »Sagenbuch«) as well as the Meier Sans in 2013 which he was not able to complete.

Michael Prümmer and Daniel Adler, both students at DHBW (Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg in Germany) interviewed Hans Eduard Meier at the age of 90 in his house in Obstalden. (Published at youtube November 28, 2012)

All EF Type Designs by Hans Eduard Meier

»ABC Schule«, a new writing concept for Swiss schools

The design of the typeface Moskau Grotesk is based on the signage created for the Café Moskau in Berlin by the graphic artist Klaus Wittkugel in the beginning of the 1960s.

The Café Moskau, across from the Kino International on Karl-Marx-Allee in Berlin Mitte was one of the prestige edifices of the former DDR (German Democratic Republic). Built in the early 1960s, it advanced over the years and changing social developments to a trademark building of the capital. The lettering display on the roof was created by the graphic artist Klaus Wittkugel (October 17, 1910 – September 19, 1985). He had been Professor at the School for Applied Arts in Berlin, and, in addition to the creation of many posters, book covers and postage stamps, he was responsible for the signage of the Kino International as well as for the complete graphic treatment for the Palace of the Republik.
The signage for the Café Moskau with the words »RESTAURANT«, »CAFÉ«, »KONZERT« and »MOCKBA« set in capital letters, becomes the basis for the Moskau Grotesk which was developed by Björn Gogalla in 2013. This face should not be seen as an imitation. A few shortcomings were »fixed«. In favor of maintaining the core characteristics some unique features were, however, not relinquished. Lower case letters and the missing capital letters were designed from scratch. It is not surprising that the plain, unassuming geometrical direction of the basic character style forms a bridge to the architecture of the 1960s. Inspired by the then favored, diverse possibilities inherent in the architectural example and wall reliefs, two complimentary pattern fonts emerged.
Björn Gogalla works as a freelance designer in Berlin and Thailand. His website is www.letteredit.gogalla.de on which he also offers his typefaces Flaco and Barklay.

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Under the heading »free font« you may download one test font and convince yourself of the quality of our product.

The FreeFont Typeface chosen for the year is Oberon by Hans Eduard Meier (deceased July 17, 2014.)

On December 2, 2003, Hans Eduard Meier wrote to Elsner+Flake:
»I created the Oberon in 1994 as the house typeface for the Institute of Computer Systems at the ETH in Zürich. Since here I had the opportunity to learn about designing typefaces with the help of a computer, I created this typeface as an exclusive for ETH. The Barbedor which is the first font I created at this Institute, and later also the Syndor which was a synthesis between the Syntax and Barbedor types, I had licensed to type foundries. Thus, the Institute had no typeface created by me for which they had exclusive rights.

The Oberon typeface was given to the Institute for its own, exclusive use without having to take other type foundries’ license agreements into consideration. Today, ten years later, I have the right to license Oberon. The rights of the Institute are in no way impacted by this. The Institute continues to be able to use the typeface in any way it sees fit, and if needed, pass it on together with products of the Institute to third parties, but it may not use it for commercial gain.

I created the Oberon typeface which was named after the Oberon Operating System developed by the Institute, with a font design program which was specifically developed by the Institute. The typeface did not contain the full character complement which is now commonly provided. Therefore, I edited the Oberon and extended the character complement. I also added, in addition to the Oberon Normal, Normal Italic and Bold, the font Oberon Small Caps Normal. Every font also includes medieval numerals. The Small Caps font contains its own numerals.«

The Oberon typeface family was offered exclusively by Elsner+Flake in 2004.

Under the heading free font you now have the opportunity to satisfy yourself about the quality of our typefaces and to test the functions of the font formats »OpenType«, »TrueType« and »Webfont«.

Under the heading »free font« you may download one test font and convince yourself of the quality of our product.

The f4e FreeFont of the year is Bernhard Gothic EF Medium. With the free download you will receive an »OpenType« or »TrueType« file which includes a permanent print license for up to five users at one location or a »WebFont« with a Web License for one domain and up to 10,000 pageviews per month. In case you need an extended license, please contact us for further assistance.

Under the heading »free font« you may download one test font and convince yourself of the quality of our product.

The FreeFont of the year 2015 is the Basisschrift®* by Hans Eduard Meier (dec. July 17, 2014). During the last ten years of his life, Hans Meier, together with Max Schläpfer, developed an innovative concept of a new Swiss Schulschrift (handwriting script for schools). His life’s work is crowned by the fact that now, since the fall of 2014, and beginning in Lucerne, this new didactic will replace the old Schnürlischrift in Switzerland. The version of the Basisschrift®, available from here, is the original version by Hans Meier.

With the free download you will receive an »OpenType« or »TrueType« file which includes a permanent print license for up to five users at one location or a »WebFont« with a Web License for one domain and up to 10,000 pageviews per month. In case you need an extended license, please contact us for further assistance.

*The brand name Basisschrift® and the design of the Basisschrift® are registered design and trademarks. Similar digital versions of the font have not been authorized by Hans Meier and may violate his rights.

»In 2013, the anniversary year of Bodoni, a number of friends of cast letters, followers of hot metal type and book printing, met in Dresden on August 11, in the new home of the Offizin Haag-Drugulin in order to – as a basis for meaningful action – found the Society for the Black Art«. Here is an excerpt from the Founding Statement which has been sent to the founding members together with an invitation to the 2nd Founders’ Meeting and the 2nd Type Festival.

While the first Type Festival was dedicated entirely to the 200th anniversary of the book printer and typographer Giambattista Bodoni (1740-1813) this year’s festival dedicates itself to two completely different alphabets: »Alte Schwabacher« and »Futura«. The daily program, as it did last year, consists of excursions, lectures, and presentations. The chairman, Professor Niels-Christian Fritsche, offers workshops together with students of the Offizin; Eckehart SchumacherGebler presents, based on original matrices, »The Touchable Schwabacher«; Professor Sybille Schmitz talks about »The Handset Type Workshop as part of Education«; and Horst Moser lectures on »Futura and its Creator, Paul Renner«.

Further information via Schriftenfest Dresden and Verein für die Schwarze Kunst Dresden sign-up: offizin-haag-drugulin

On the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the »Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig« (HGB) – the Institute for Graphics and the Art of the Book in Leipzig – the Museum für Druckkunst – Printing Museum Leipzig – has mounted an exhibition »From Book to Street« to be shown from June 27 to September 28, 2014.

Beginning in the 18th century, typography expanded increasingly beyond the confines of the book and began to determine the look of the city. Whether political or commercial, letters transported messages to the public on walls, kiosks and in shop windows. In addition to printed messages, hand-painted typography appeared on signs and on storefronts, street names were carved in stone or whole brick walls were covered with typographic inscriptions. These techniques in transposition, important developments in the printing industry as well as the influences of architecture and painting led to an extraordinary proliferation of letterforms in the 19th century.

Under the guidance of Julia Blume, Professor Fred Smeijers and Pierre Pané-Farré (all of the HGB Leipzig) students who specialize in type design explored the Leipzig archives and libraries for supporting images that show the visual impact and the abundance of facets of type. Special emphasis was put on the era between 1600 and 1920. Placards, type specimen, post cards, printed matter, photographs, objects and films were chosen for this exhibit. Artifacts which closely relate to Leipzig received special attention.

Another part of the exhibit concerns itself with the often used method for type rendering: stenciling. Visitors can try this reproduction technique themselves with the help of a re-constructed stenciling table. A selection of historical objects provides insights into the production and development of this manual technique.

For students who specialize in type design, which is a profiled arm of the HGB Leipzig and which can look back to a history of 110 years, the exhibit makes it possible to achieve an insight into the unique work of the type designer for whom historical reflections take on such an important degree.

Pieces for this exhibit are on loan from the following institutions in Leipzig:
Stadtgeschichtliches Museum, Deutsches Buch- und Schriftmuseum, Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, Stadtarchiv and Sächsisches Staatsarchiv Leipzig.

Docents will conduct tours Sundays at noon: July 13, August 28, September 19 and 28, 2014.
Further information at: Museum für Druckkunst Leipzig and
Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig
Exhibit times: Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Saturdays.

From April 8 to June 8, 2014, the Graphics Gallery of the »Museum der Arbeit« in Hamburg will host an exhibition about Louis Braille who, in 1825, developed the typeface for blind people that was named after him.

What Johannes Gutenberg did for seeing people, Louis Braille has done for the blind. Moreover: while Gutenberg developed the technique which made it possible to reproduce texts created in an established typeface for larger editions, Braille created a new touchable type system about 200 years ago which gave blind people access to a comprehensive education.

In cooperation with the »Blinden- und Sehbehindertenverein e. V.« (the Organization for Blind and Sight Challenged People), the »Museum der Arbeit« shows why the simple and ingenious invention by Louis Braille was able to succeed and why his typeface, consisting of six dots, remains the worldwide standard to this day.

Louis Braille is only three years old when he injures his eye while he is playing with an awl. Both eyes become inflamed and two years later, he goes blind. As a ten-year old he is awarded a stipend to attend the »Institute for Blind Youths« in Paris. Here, the so-called »Nachtschrift« is taught. The Officer Charles Barbier de la Serre had developed an abstract set of signs made up from twelve punched dots which was used for the secret transferal of military information during the night. But the awkward touching from high to low made reading too difficult. Louis Braille reduces the basic form to 6 dots, and already in 1825, at the age of 16, he has completed his alphabet. These signs are easily readable for blind people. Writing, also, is easy to do with the help of a tablet and punch.

In this special exhibit »Louis Braille. The Gutenberg for the Blind« visitors will have the chance to try out different typefaces for the blind. Furthermore, there will be examples of the helpful devices – from the groove-profile board to the dot-dot typewriter to the modern computer workstation – with which blind people from yesterday to today read and write the Braille type.

The museum offers special guided tours for schools and other groups with practical options: Seeing visitors will be offered an introduction into the history of typography for the blind and can also try out writing on the groove-profile board. Blind and sight-challenged visitors can touch lead types in the workshop of the Museum and feel their impressions on heavy paper.


Lectures:

April 28, 2014, 6:00 p.m.
Ulrike Backofen
Selfhelp for the Blind does not just fall from the Sky
The History of the Organization for the »Blinden- und Sehbehinderten Verein e. V.«

May 19, 2014, 6:00 p.m.
Ulrike Backofen
The Blind Witness. Helpless or Super Hero?
Blindness in the Media

June 2, 2014, 6:00 pm
Torsten Wolfsdorff
Introduction to the Exhibit with a basic Braille course


Companion Program for School Classes and Groups

Feeling a Typeface. Braille Type for the Seeing
With the idea that they might be able to exchange secret information, blind people were denied the right to have their own type for a long time. Yet to this day, many seeing people look at type for the blind as if it were a secret language. In the exhibition »Louis Braille. The Gutenberg of the Blind« Torsten Wolfsdorff of the Organization for the »Blind- and Sight-Challenged e. V.« and who is himself blind, talks about how the ingenious invention of six raised dots functions and how he uses it – from jotting down a shopping list to using his workstation. Following the lecture, the attendants can try out themselves how to use a typeface for the blind and the groove-profile board. It’s not that easy!

Museum der Arbeit |
Stiftung Historische Museen Hamburg |
Wiesendamm 3 | 22305 Hamburg

View Braille

Our dear Hamburg friend and business partner Wolfgang Dutschke died on his 76th birthday on January 25, 2014, after a long illness.

Wolfgang belonged among the pioneers of digital typography. His training as a typesetter in the fifties may not have been his first choice of a profession, but already during his apprentice years he was so taken by the subject that he enrolled at the University for Fine Arts in Hamburg to further his education. He was especially influenced by his studies with Richard von Sichowsky, the founder of the »Hamburg School.« After spending several years of training in Switzerland, he opened his own advertising agency in Hamburg.

»The foundation for any typographic work is the alphabet.«
With this sentence he introduces the type specimen of his alphabet »Diamanti« which he developed in 1987. With his love for detail and his passion for precision he developed the »Diamanti Diagonal« family of typefaces as early as three years after the appearance of the first Apple Macintosh®. A few years later, this was followed be the »Diamanti Condensed«. At this time Wolfgang wrote: »The Diamanti Condensed design was a response to the desire for the highest level of readability at very small sizes. The most important uses for this face will be catalogs, text books and user directions.«

As much as he loved and lived his profession and micro-typography, as much he devoted his free time to the restoration of large French clocks. Here, as well, he was guided by his dedication to precision and attention to the smallest detail in order to reach perfection at the highest level.

Wolfgang leaves us with his »Lexikon der Typography« (The Dictionary of Typography) which, unfortunately, he could not finish because of his advancing illness.

We are glad that we still have the Diamanti Typeface catalogs in our archives and shall be glad to forward them to interested parties.

View Diamanti

The silent film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) is undoubtedly one of the breathtaking milestones within the German Expressionist Movement, a time of extraordinarily creative works of art as a reaction to a world in rapid change. The original intertitles of Caligari were worked out by the set designers (and painters) Walter Reimann, Walter Röhrig, and Hermann Warm, using a unique expressionistic language of form for dramatic and iconic lettering.

When in 2010 KOMA AMOK’s Joerg Ewald Meißner and Gerd Sebastian Jakob were commissioned by the Institut Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt and publisher Hatje Cantz to design the catalog for the exhibition The Total Artwork in Expressionism—showing works of art, architecture, film, literature, theater, and dance—it was soon perfectly clear that a new typeface, inspired by the Caligari intertitles, should speak for all the expressionistic arts.

An intense process of research and analysis began. The original letters of the Caligari intertitles were individuals on their own. Furthermore, each of the three title designers had added his specific approach to the basic Caligari type style. From hundreds of different As to Zs a choice had to be made, which should be THE characteristic Caligari letter for a digital typesetting font. Finally the chosen letters were cut and drawn again, missing letters were added according to the formal principles, all-in-all 1000 glyphs were digitised to complete a useful OpenType font ready for use. When in the autumn of 2010 the exhibition started successfully with great media interest, the posters all over Darmstadt announced »You must become Caligari!«—set in the brandnew typeface.

The font Caligari Pro offers alternative forms for every letter and a whole bunch of ligatures, thus creating an expressive, individual image of headlines and text. By using included Stylistic Alternates the image will get even more vivid. Caligari comes with a complete set of expressionist ornaments and true old style figures—thus the heyday of the Expressionist Movement and the era of the silent films can be revived typographically by the means of today: »Express Yourself!«.

Contains:
Caligari Pro Regular

Designed by KOMA AMOK,
Joerg Ewald Meissner and Gerd Sebastian Jakob 2011

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At first glance, Materia shows a contemporary flair, combining pure, strong geometrical form with a subtle, distinct appearance. Actually, the postneutral design was inspired by lettering from the turn of the 19th to the 20th century that still can be found in the East of France. While its formal origins date back as far as this, revived e. g. by the constructivists into the nineteen twenties and later on by Dutch information designer Wim Crouwel in the nineteen-sixties, the visual language of Materia still speaks of »future«.

Following a minimalistic concept the font is formally built on a grid. Wherever optical curves are needed for a smoother, more comfortable shape of letters than a simple rectangular block, diagonals cut off the edges—like a diamond is cut to achieve more beauty. Thus headlines and texts set in Materia are given a certain »edgy« feeling, whereas their tonality is still kept well-balanced, keeping concentration all on information in a nonconformist way.

Materia comes in eight styles, from elegant Thin to attention-forcing Ultra. Even a regular Italic is available, following the classic type-setprinciple. Two of the styles are explicitly designed for display use, Shadow and Code. Both are ready for combinations with Bold or each other respectively, the layering of Shadow and Code e. g. allows astonishing effects of highlighting within the letters.

For OpenType-users Materia is a real Pro, containing accented Latin letters for over 70 languages, small caps, old style, tabular and lining figures and special condensed titling all caps for cases in which space is all that counts. How useful all of the above mentioned is may be seen in the book David Lynch—Lithos, designed by KOMA AMOK, published in 2010 by item éditions, Paris, and Hatje Cantz, Germany, which was typeset completely in Materia.

Designed by KOMA AMOK,
Joerg Ewald Meissner and Gerd Sebastian Jakob
2011

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Thus far, the company provided webfonts upon request only (fonts4web). Now, the libraries of Elsner+Flake, Scangraphic, Apply Design Group, Typoart and TypeShop are in the process of being expanded and will also be offered for licensing via the Elsner+Flake Onlineshop www.fonts4ever.com. You can find out which fonts are presently available by klicking on »webfonts« on the menubar of the home page or the button »fonts4web« in the »advanced search« option of the particular website. Webfonts are also marked as such on the lists of fonts provided for the individual libraries. Here, you can chose a package with the three fonts4web formats .woff, .eot and .svg directly on the pull-down menu and place it into the shopping cart. Css- and htaccess-data will be provided for these web fonts. This data allows the fonts to be incorporated into your website.

If you want to check the quality of the rendition, you can do so on the detail page of the particular font. Here you will find, among others, the character complement of the web font in question. If you select the menu point Browser View you can view the webfont as it appears in the chosen browser. The first view shows the range of sizes recommended by Elsner+Flake. If you need to see further pixel sizes for specific applications, you can klick twice to access the second level.

With its extended complement, the comprehensive redesign of Bank Gothic by Elsner+Flake offers a wide spectrum for usage. After 80 years, the typface Bank Gothic, designed by Morris Fuller Benton in 1930, is still as desirable for all areas of graphic design as it has ever been. Its usage spans the design of headlines to exterior design. Game manufacturers adopt this spry typeface, so reminiscent of the Bauhaus and its geometric forms, as often as do architects and web designers.

The creative path of the Bank Gothic from hot metal type via phototypesetting to digital variations created by desktop designers has by now taken on great breadth. The number of cuts has increased. The original Roman weight has been augmented by Oblique and Italic variants. The original versions came with just a complement of Small Caps. Now, they are, however, enlarged by often quite individualized lower case letters. In order to do justice to the form changes and in order to differentiate between the various versions, the Bank Gothic, since 2007 a US trademark of the Grosse Pointe Group (Trademark FontHaus, USA), is nowadays available under a variety of different names. Some of these variations remain close to the original concept, others strive for greater individualism in their designs.

The typeface family which was cut by the American typefoundry ATF (American Type Founders) in the early 1930’s consisted of a normal and a narrow type family, each one in the weights Light, Medium and Bold. In addition to its basic ornamental structure which has its origin in square or rectangular geometric forms, there is another unique feature of the Bank Gothic: the normally round upper case letters such as B, C, G, O, P, Q, R and U are also rectangular. The one exception is the upper case letter D, which remains round, most likely for legibility reasons (there is the danger of mistaking it for the letter O.)

Because of the huge success of this type design, which follows the design principles of the more square and the more contemporary adaption of the already existing Copperplate, it was soon adopted by all of the major type and typesetting manufacturers. Thus, the Bank Gothic appeared at Linotype; as Commerce Gothic it was brought out by Ludlow; and as Deluxe Gothic on Intertype typesetters. Among others, it was also available from Monotype and sold under the name Stationer’s Gothic. In 1936, Linotype introduced 6pt and 12pt weights of the condensed version as Card Gothic. Lateron, Linotype came out with Bank Gothic Medium Condensed in larger sizes and a more narrow set width and named it Poster Gothic. With the advent of photoypesetters and CRT technologies, the Bank Gothic experienced an even wider acceptance. The first digital versions, designed according to present computing technologies, was created by Bitstream whose PostScript fonts in Regular and Medium weights have been available through FontShop since 1991. These were followed by digital redesigns by FontHaus, USA, and, in 1996, by Elsner+Flake who were also the first company to add cursive cuts. In 2009, they extended the family to 16 weights in both Roman and Oblique designs. In addition, they created the long-awaited Cyrillic complement. In 2010, Elsner+Flake completed the set with lowercase letters and small caps. Since its redesign the type family has been available from Elsner+Flake under the name Bank Sans.

The character set of the Bank Sans Caps and the Bank Sans Pro covers almost all latin-based languages (Europe Plus) as well as the Cyrillic character set MAC OS Cyrillic and MS Windows 1251. Both families are available in Normal, Condensed and Compressed weights in 4 stroke widths each (Light, Regular, Medium and Bold). The basic stroke widths of the different weights have been kept even which allows the mixing of, for instance, normal upper case letters and the more narrow small caps. This gives the family an even wider and more interactive range of use. There are, furthermore, extensive sets of numerals which can be accessed via OpenType-Features. The Bank Sans EL type family, as opposed to the Bank Sans Caps family, contains, instead of the optically reduced upper case letters, newly designed lower case letters and the matching small caps. Bank Sans fonts are available in the formats OpenType and TrueType. You can acquire these fonts via Bank Sans

»The Society of Typographic Aficionados (SOTA) is now accepting programming proposals for its thirteenth annual conference. TypeCon2011 will be held July 5th – 10th, 2011 in New Orleans.

Under the motto »Surge« an affordable program will be offered designed for type makers and type users from all walks of life«.
This announcement was posted February 14, 2011 by board member Grant Hutchinson. The board of SOTA is currently reviewing proposals for contemporary and historical presentations and panel discussions, focused hands-on workshops in both the digital and non-digital realms, and a variety of programming for the Type & Design Education Forum and other special events.
Topics for presentations at TypeCon cover a broad range of interests, including typography, type design, font production, graphic design, new media, printing history, calligraphy and hand lettering, the book arts, advertising, type in motion, literacy, type sales and marketing, legal issues, type and design education, and other related areas.

For more information www.typecon.com.

In 2007, Christian Büning founded www.lernplakate.de (»Posters for Teaching«), an internet platform offering interesting posters in support of teaching and education.

We would like to draw attention specifically to the »Typographic Calendar 2011«, »The Anatomy of Letters« and »Letter Foundaries in Germany«. As of January 1, 2011, the company, presently functioning under the name »Lernplakate.de, Fachverlag für Schaubilder und Übersichten«, will be known as »Plakatverlag UG & Co KG« and will be managed by the network executive Jan Rodorf and Christian Büning.

Today, we received the following e-mail from Christian Büning:

Dear Friends of Large Format Publishing,
I would rather not know how many good poster ideas linger in dark desk drawers and never see the light of day on a sheet-fed offset plate. Today, we are happy to announce the salvation for these ideas: designers can now publish their poster designs at www.wandformate.de and make money without having to adhere to the restrictions of a minimal print run. By using wandformate.de, they can even go a step farther: because of the close relationship with Lernplakate Specialty Publishers, a one-off print can quickly turn into a print run of any size. If a poster turns out to be successful, it can be made public by Lernplakate Publishers. This way, designers not only have their own unique publications, but if appropriate, can easily make them available throughout the European marketplace.

Give your ideas the light of day!
Show us your design via www.wandformate.de.
We look forward to seeing your ideas.

With best regards from Münster –
Christian Büning

We like this idea very much and are interested in seeing how wandformate.de will develop in the future.

From January 11 to March 6, 2011, the Museum der Arbeit, Hamburg, Germany will show, for the first time outside of Glückstadt, the »Chinesische Zirkel«, together with photos by Candida Höfer and August Sander.

The Printing Company J.J. Augustin of Glückstadt will present a unique worldwide phenomenon, based on its »Chinese Circle« – the setting of Chinese ideographs on a circle. Since hot metal type is no longer in use, The Museum der Arbeit will show it, for the first time outside of Glückstadt, together with photography by Candida Höfer and August Sander and a film about the fate of the apprentice Jimmy Ernst. The Augustins were able to help the son of Max Ernst to flee to the USA in 1938.

Events at the exhibit »Zwiebelfische«: The documentary »Zwiebelfische – Jimmy Ernst, Glückstadt–New York« was awarded the prize for the best documentary film at the Northern German Film Festival in November 2010. Ulrike Haage received first prize for the best movie score. The movie will be shown every day at 3 p.m. (60 minutes; group showings can be arranged).

Additional events as part of this exhibit:
Sunday-Matinee with guided discussion, starting at 1 p.m.:

»Zwiebelfische«, Sunday, January 16 and 23, as well as February 6, 13, and 28, 2011, 1 p.m.
»Schrift ist ein Abenteuer« (Typography is an Adventure) – Imprimerie Nationale Paris, Sunday, January 30, 2011, 1 p.m.
»Rendezvous of Friends« – A Film about a Picture and its History: Sunday, February 20, 2011, 1 p.m.
Finissage: a Piano Recital by Ulrike Haage in the »Chinese Circle«: Sunday, March 6, 2011, 1 p.m.

* »Zwiebelfische«, in the language of hot metal typesetters, are letters that have been place in the wrong compartment of a typecase

Am Mittwoch, den 9. Februar 2011 findet der nächste Typostammtisch in Hamburg statt.

Diesmal treffen wir uns in der Nähe von Alexander Ertles Atelier im FRAPPANT Altona. Dort ist es warm, es gibt Getränke und einen größeren Tisch, an dem wir gut reden und auch Dinge zeigen können. Read more...

The 7th German Letterpress Exhibition will take place on January 15 to 16, 2011 at the Museum der Arbeit in Hamburg.

50 book designers from Germany and abroad will show their printed treasures at The Art of the Book Printing Exhibit and offer them for sale. Press proofs, art books, binders, books as original graphics etc. will be presented which will give the viewer a multi-faceted picture of the liveliness and creativity of the book scene.

Additionally, visitors will be given introductions into the world of the printing trade, the artistic design of books, as well as the manufacture of books and paper. The staff of the museum will demonstrate book printing, hot metal type founding, hand and machine printing processes, the cutting of wood types and the asembly of chases on historical machines. The type designer Wang Ning from Janjing will present a masterful exhibition of traditional Chinese calligraphy and will inspire observers to pick up a brush themselves.

The exhibit will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on January 15th, and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on January 16th. Further information is available at www.buchdruckkunst.de.

Alexander Ertle lädt zum letzten Hamburger Typostammtisch des Jahres 2010 ein. Das Thema heißt diesmal: »Selbst gemacht und selbst gefunden«.

Diesmal werden keine Gäste eingeladen, sondern, wer möchte, bringt Fundstücke gerne einfach mit. Oder eigene Arbeiten. Neues oder älteres, völlig egal – viele haben eine Sammlung interessanter Gegenstände und dieser Abend bietet Gelegenheit, sich darüber ganz locker auszutauschen.

Der Stammtisch findet diesmal nicht im Gängeviertel statt, weil es in den Räumen zu kühl ist. Wir treffen uns am 15. Dezember 2010 um 20:00 Uhr in der Gaststätte Blaue Blume in der Gerichtsstraße 49, 22765 Hamburg.

Wir laden über einen E-Mail Verteiler ein. Wer gerne weiterhin informiert werden möchte, wendet sich per E-Mail an:

Alexander Ertle
Kommunikationsdesigner
Ruhrstraße 49
D-22761 Hamburg

Telefon: +49 (0) 176–26 06 44 25
Internet: http://cargocollective.com/aek
Email: alexander.ertle@gmail.com

Am Mittwoch, den 9. März 2011 findet der nächste Typostammtisch in Hamburg statt.

Wir treffen uns in der Nähe von Alexander Ertles Atelier im FRAPPANT Altona. Dort ist es warm, es gibt Getränke und einen größeren Tisch, an dem wir gut reden und auch Dinge zeigen können.

Diesmal Gast ist Frank Steitiya von URW++ zum Thema »Global Fonts für Global Player«.

Das Thema:
Die Welt wächst zusammen und damit auch die Sprachsysteme – darauf reagiert URW++ mit seinen Global Fonts (u. a. Nimbus Sans). Herr Steitiya wird uns etwas über die Kunst, lateinische und nicht-lateinische Zeichen innerhalb eines Zeichensatzes harmonieren zu lassen, erzählen. Dies illustriert er anhand von Anwendungsbeispielen aus der Welt der Corporate Fonts.

Der Ort:
Im FRAPPANT (ehemalige Viktoria-Kaserne)
im Zeiseweg 9, 22765 Hamburg
Anfahrt: http://frappant.org/kontakt/anfahrt

Der Eingang befindet sich auf der Rückseite des Gebäudes
über den Hinterhof in der Bodenstedtstraße. Dort ist es der
grün beleuchtete Eingang, gleich rechts ist das fraplap 007.
Genügend Parkplätze auf dem Hinterhof sind vorhanden.

Die Zeit:
Am Mittwoch | 9. März 2011 | um 20.30 Uhr.

Wir laden über einen E-Mail Verteiler ein. Wer gerne weiterhin informiert werden möchte, wende sich per E-Mail an:

Alexander Ertle
Kommunikationsdesigner
Ruhrstraße 49
D-22761 Hamburg

Telefon: +49 (0) 176–26 06 44 25
Email: alexander.ertle@gmail.com

This month, the autobiography of József Molnár was published in Hungarian in a limited edition of only 50 copies.

József Molnár (1918–2009) was a Hungarian writer, publisher and printer who went into exile in 1948 and who lived in Munich since 1955. In 1950, Molnár became one of the co-founders of the journal »Látóhatár – eine Zeitschrift für Literatur und Politik«
(Látóhatár – A Journal for Literature and Politics) with which he remained involved until 1989. In 1963, his publishing house »Aurora« began publishing the books of a number of Hungarian writers. Because he had a special love for the types of the Hungarian Nicolas Kis (1650–1702) he founded the »Misztótfalusi Kis Miklós Múzeumi Alapítvány«, and, in 1991, became co-founder of the museum in Misztótfalu.

The recently published autobiography decribes Molnár’s life. He spent his childhood and his school years in Esztergomtábor. Hungry for education József enrolled in an educational institution for boys. For the extraordinarily gifted but poor boy, this is the only place where he can learn. In Esztergom he meets Géza Féja. In his youth and during his years of education, he discovers his love for literature and politics. He talks about his escape from Hungary in 1948 and about his life and work in exile in the United States in the 50s.

Futura®, designed 1926 by Paul Renner is now titel and topic of a breathtaking musical. Visit Pasadena, CA or New York to be witness of this unique event.

A shared world premiere with Portland Center Stage and The National Asian American Theatre Company of Jordan Harrisons musical Futura® raises the question »Can a Font Change the Future?« Be there and listen to a lecture with the topic »From Pen to Pixel – the History of Typography«, which becomes a breathtaking thriller.

Boston Court, Pasadena, CA until November 14, 2010 and TBG Theatre, New York until November 13, 2010.

More Press Releases.

Alexander Ertle lädt wieder zum Typostammtisch am 20. Oktober 2010 um 20:30 Uhr in Hamburg ein. Diesmal findet er in der Fabrik im Gängeviertel statt. Read more...

Die Sommerpause ist vorbei, Zeit für einen weiteren Hamburger Typostammtisch im September! Read more...

The type designer Karl-Heinz Lange died on June 29, 2010 shortly before his 81st birthday. At the time of his death he was working on the design of a new Antiqua on which he was collaborating with Veronika Elsner and Günther Flake. The italic cuts of his design “Viabella” had just been published when we received the sad news. Read more...

Nach dem schönen 1. Typostammtisch hier in Hamburg findet nun der 2. mit dem selben Konzept statt. Nach wie vor sind Interessierte und deren Freunde eingeladen zu kommen. Read more...

Typo Roundtable 1 in Hamburg met for the first time on May 26 in the “Gängeviertel”. Interested parties and their friends were invited to attend. Read more...

A special exhibit in the Museum für Druckkunst in Leipzig celebrates Robert Schumann’s 200th birthday. Read more...

A series of typographic lectures will take place on June 21, 2010 in Brno, Czech Republic, at the “House of the Lords of Kunštát”. Read more...

On June 3–4, 2010, Eyes & Ears of Europe will, in collaboration with DW-TV in Berlin, offer an Eyes & Ears Academy on the subject of “Typography in the Moving Image”. Read more...

Professor Jovica Veljović named recipient of the Karl-Schneider-Prize of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. Read more...

On April 8, 2010, the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste, Zurich, introduces its newest form of printed matter, a Font Fan. Read more...

Elsner+Flake and SchumacherGeber, Studio for Typography, Typesetting and Media, Munich, as well as Eckehart SchumacherGebler himself, have made a contract for the exclusive collaboration of the digitization of hot metal typefaces. Read more...

Since January 1, 2010 new regulations have been instituted for clients from non-German European Union countries.

As of January 1, 2010, based on a change in business law, it is obligatory to include the added value tax identification number (VAT Number) on any order you place with a German company. If this number is not included or if there is a mistake in the number, your invoice will be increased by 19% (German VAT). If you do include your correct added value tax identification number you will not be charged the 19%. The added value tax identification number you indicate will be checked automatically by the Central Federal Office for Taxes for its correctness. You can also contact the German chamber of foreign trade for further information.

The organization for »Lichtdruck-Kunst Leipzig« (Collotype Printing Leipzig) plans to exhibit the results obtained by members taking part in the second collotype symposium 2009. Read more...

In concert with its motto »Economic Upturn happens in the Head« the association of communications professionals (Gesamtverband Kommunikationsagenturen) awarded this year’s »Effies« on October 9, 2009. »Effies« are among the most coveted awards presented in the field of advertising. Read more...

Together with an end-of-the-year offering of reduced prices for selected fonts, the long-awaited ‛‛extended search option’’ for the fonts4ever webshop will now be available. Read more...

The graphic design magazine »Novum«, in its September 2009 issue, dedicates, once again, a double page spread to Typography and features, among others, the typeface family »Novice« by Helen Ebert. Read more...

The 4th DTL FontMaster Conference will take place on November 18th, 2009 at the Steigenberger Kurhaus Hotel in Den Haag. Read more...

»Die geteilte Form«, the new book by Günter Höhne with the subject of German-German design affairs between 1949 and 1989 illuminates the development of product culture on both sides of the divided Germany. Read more...

The Bund Deutscher Grafik-Designer (BDG) and the Verband Deutscher Industrie Designer (VDID) ) invite you to attend a panel discussion on the subject »Das Beste für den Werktätigen? Design in der DDR – Anspruch und Bilanz« (»What’s best for the Worker? Design in the DDR – Claims and Conclusions«). The event is scheduled for November 11, 2009 at 6 p.m. in the legendary film theater Babylon in Berlin Mitte (Underground Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz). Read more...

Readings on Sounds and Noise. The Leipzig author Werner Pollandt will read from papers on addressing that subject on October 28, 2009 at the Museum für Druckkunst in Leipzig. Read more...

October 2, 2009 Macworld published its article »Font Problems in Snow Leopard«. Read more...

The Association Typographique Internationale (ATypI), a network of typographers, graphic designers, type manufacturers and teachers, is planning its 53rd annual conference with the goal of furthering the culture, history and traditions of typographic development. Read more...

Dr. Edward Rondthaler, the co-founder of the International Typeface Corporation (ITC) died on August 19, 2009 in New York in his 105th year. Read more...

The printing company Augustin J. J. Druckerei GmbH of Glückstadt, Northern Germany, founded in 1632, has specialized in the typesetting and printing of foreign language materials for over 100 years. Now, a documentary film will capture the historic development of this establishment for future generations. Read more...

The Berlin graphic artist and type designer Karl-Heinz Lange will be 80 years old on July 29, 2009. We congratulate him and honor him with the introduction of his new family of typefaces, Viabella. Read more...

The recently published biography of the type founder Georg Hartmann also sheds light on an important chapter in the history of the “Black Art.” Hartmann acquired the Bauer Type Foundry in Frankfurt in 1898 and remained its leader until his death in 1954. Read more...

Elsner+Flake delivers digital fonts to the Museum für Druckkunst (Museum for the Printing Arts). The typeface »Kristall Grotesk« belongs to the permanent collection of the Werkstattmuseum, Leipzig, since its acquisition of the typefaces and matrices of the Johannes Wagner GmbH. Read more...

The motto for this year’s TypeCon is »Rhythm« – TypeCon is a conference for everybody who loves type and typography, and for everybody who works with, and uses, type and typography. The conference takes place from the 14th to the 19th of July in Atlanta, Georgia. Read more...

On the menu, look for »Foundries« where you will find a Custom Font Library now offered by Veronika Elsner and Günther Flake. Here, the user has the opportunity to acquire licenses for exclusive as well as non-exclusive house typefaces. Read more...

Within the framework of the 8th Jewish Week the Museum für Druckkunst (Museum for the Printing Arts) in Leipzig will exhibit valuable papers from the time before the founding of the state of Israel. Read more...

After looking back on six months of successful internet presence, we are now making an extended version of the site available. Read more...

Museum of the Printing Arts Leipzig and Elsner+Flake Designstudios signed a cooperation contract to digitize and distribute type faces from the museum's unique collection of type matrices and hot metal type. Read more...

Hans Eduard Meier, Designer of Syntax and ITC Syndor, developed a ground breaking concept for handwriting education in primary schools as an alternative to Schnürlischrift, which was used for many years in Swiss schools. Read more...

Prof. Gert Wunderlich, the well known German typographer and book designer, has extended his typeface Maxima (1962 – 1989) to become a comprehensive font family. Read more...

On December 2, 2008, one of the most well-known and highly-regarded typographers of the 20th century passed away in Munich. He was 87 years old. Read more...

The typefaces »Aniene Vecchia« and »Aniene Nuova«, designed by Adriane Krakowski, received the TDC medal at the Type Director’s Club, New York. Read more...

The new millennium also created a new Roman Type – Indigo Pro designed by Swedish type designer Johan Ström, available for text- and display sizes. Read more...

For years now Petras Script designed by calligrapher Petra Beisse has been successful in the Mac and PC-world. Now Petra has been inspired by the handwriting of the famous womanizer Casanova – and designed a font called Casanova Script. Read more...