Typophile - 24 typeface you must know - Comments

I’m not sure if there is

Matt Steel — Wed, 2 Jul 2008 08:24:54 -0700

I’m not sure if there is any magic to the number 24; I second others’ opinions that it might make more sense to break it down by period style, with 1–2 typefaces for each. For example:

Ancient Roman
Trajan

Old Style Serif
Garamond, Bembo

Transitional
Caslon, Baskerville

Scotch Roman
New Caledonia, Miller

Modern
Bodoni, Didot, Times New Roman

Grotesque
Helvetica, Akzidenz, Univers, Franklin Gothic

Geometric
Futura, Gotham

Humanist
Scala Sans, TheSans

etc...

Has anyone mentioned Gotham?

Matt Steel — Wed, 2 Jul 2008 08:20:18 -0700

Has anyone mentioned Gotham? How about TheSans? Trade Gothic? Franklin Gothic? These are all timeless and fairly ubiquitous sans faces, not to mention they are respectively humanized Geometric, Humanist Sans and Grotesques.

I was just posting that

oneelectricfairy — Tue, 1 Jul 2008 13:35:13 -0700

I was just posting that because sometimes teachers like to recommend fonts that haven’t been included in the computer labs list of fonts. (Mostly because they don’t usually update the fontbooks, or add additional fonts than the defaults).

The schools computers DO

dzobel — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:54:54 -0700

The schools computers DO have the fonts installed on them for the students to work on them.

There isn’t a school out

oneelectricfairy — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 13:29:32 -0700

There isn’t a school out there that I know of that helps students get anything. Oh yeah, a student discount is great, but many times its hard to afford the paper, ink, software, hardware and other things. You’ll be lucky if the school computers have the fonts that students are expected to use.

I think Adnix has a good point.

Will your school be

adnix — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:20:18 -0700

Will your school be licensing and installing the 24 faces on the classroom computers? Are the students expected to purchase the fonts for their own computers in order to complete homework? Certain foundries offer student discounts or at least sell individual weights, but price needs to be a consideration as most students have limited funds. You don’t want to inadvertenly promote stealing fonts.

David

Type history is an important

Christian Robertson — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:57:13 -0700

Type history is an important topic. Students should know and understand how we got to where we are. However, students are done a great disservice when they are only shown old work. That’s why you see so many student pieces that use Serpentine sans. To them everything is new and great.

So my recommendation: do a type history section. Then do a “what’s happening right now” section. Show new types as well as old types that are being used appropriately the current cultural context. Show how cultural contexts change (even from year to year).

Dylan that is gorgeous.

Miss Tiffany — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:57:43 -0700

Dylan that is gorgeous.

I’m quite suprised that

oneelectricfairy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:37:31 -0700

I’m quite suprised that someone suggested Optima. My teachers all hate that font. As students, I think we all really liked it until it was beaten out of us.

I think the inclusion of Gill Sans is an important one.

By the way, braille has been designed if I’m not mistaken. I feel like I saw it designed in some old icon collection books. But obviously, I think it was mostly designed for the seeing, not for the blind. It would be the equivilant of inking the dots, or coloring them.

Also, I agree on the importance of Rotis, it’s a beautiful and modern font that can fit a lot of different needs. I think there should be room for Rotis and Univers, as Univers is an entirely different font in my opinion.

And by the way, you rarely get to use a Victorian typeface for anything.. at all.. ever.

(No subject)

jedy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:23:13 -0700

Speaking of blindness...is

Koppa — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:08:55 -0700

Speaking of blindness...is there only one Braille type face? Or have there been attempts to design Braille? Is it time to design Braille?

Wow you guys really know

jedy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:45:24 -0700

Wow you guys really know your stuff.I think thats a pretty solid list you have there,coming from someone who isnt a graphic designer and who’s knowledge is very limited,here are four not included that I wouldve loved to have been introduced to in my first 24.

Didot
Avant Garde
Rotis..tho I realise with only 24 to choose there is not really room for both univers and rotis..
Meta

Just a little perspective from a blind man.

Maybe I should have phrased

dzobel — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 13:18:36 -0700

Maybe I should have phrased the question differently than I did. The 24 typefaces are only a part of the class probably 20% the other 80% is learning how and when to use certain typefaces. When to use display type, text treatments, when and how to use body copy, how text can be used as your graphic and not just for information, how to mix text with graphics, pushing and challenging the reader, hierarchy, alignment, grid, typographic color, multi page design, spreads, grids, texture, legibility, etc. I am NOT having them imitate anything. I show them design that ranges from clean and sophisticated to corporate to edgy. The 24 typefaces are only part of that whole class.

Off course I show them the different categories and how to use them and why and maybe it is my fault in how I phrased the question, but it was not meant to turn into what should be taught and what should not be taught.

I posted this because you guys are into typography just as much as I am, maybe more a lot more, and I thought this would be a good topic to bring up. Maybe I should have phrased it “If you had to bring 24 typefaces with you and only 24 which typefaces would you bring?”

Someone posted about showing Victorian typefaces as some of the 24 and that is fine, but that all depends on the client and what style of Victorian or grunge that they want not ONE specific Victorian typeface.

I don’t think it’s so

DrDoc — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:07:20 -0700

I don’t think it’s so important for them to learn how to use these 24 specific typefaces. What’s more important is for your students to be able to categorize typefaces, and to learn when their use is appropriate. If they leave your class knowing how to use 24 typefaces, and only 24 typefaces, then they have learned nothing; they aren’t learning how to do anything original with those typefaces. If you instead teach them how to categorize typefaces, then you’ll get some pretty bad results along the way, but they’ll be better designers for it.

This is really a question of imitation versus innovation. If your goal is to teach them how to create consistently good, but not innovative, design with 24 typefaces, then you will accomplish your goal. If your goal is to teach them how to be innovative with type, then you’re going about it all wrong.

> [...] I contemplated for a

novas — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 05:16:35 -0700

> [...] I contemplated for a long time whether to put in goudy, palatino,
> and Jenson, but opted for Meridian, Sabon, and Scala instead.

What the font is MeridiAn?
Or did you mean Frutiger’s Meridien, which certainly is a pretty, but IMO not an essential typeface?

24 typeface you must know

dzobel — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:01:47 -0700

I am a graphic designer and professor teaching graphic design. I give my designing with type class 24 typefaces they must know before they leave my class (12 serif and 12 sans serif). I thought it would be interesting to see what typeface you all think are the essential 24 typefaces to learn.

Here are the ones that I have given them:

Serif: Bembo, Bodoni, Caslon, Century Schoolbook, Sabon, Scala, Clarendon, Garamond, Meridian, Mrs. Eaves, Trajan, and Baskerville

Sans Serif: Akzidenz Grotesk, Avenier, Century Gothic, DIN, Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, Futura, Helvetica, Interstate, Neutra, Scala, and Univers

Let me know your thoughts.

-david