The project plan for my first font design calls for me to come up with the features and intentions of the prominent humanist sans faces of the twentieth century. Once that is done, I will make up a kind of brief for what my design will strive to accomplish, based on a selective composite of these historical faces.

Some of the discussion at this recent thread was helpful for this.

. . Gill Sans
. . . . date
. . . . . . 1927-30
. . . . designer
. . . . . . Eric Gill, Monotype
. . . . intended use
. . . . . . advertisements
. . . . . . signage
. . . . design sources
. . . . . . Johnston’s London Transport alphabet
. . . . “humanism” comes from
. . . . . . proportions
. . . . . . . . narrower narrow letters (E, P, S, s) than grotesque
. . . . . . . . proportions from Johnston, in turn from Roman classical letters
. . . . . . . . two-storey a and g
. . . . . . stress
. . . . . . . . appears monoline, with thinning at branches (h, m, n, etc.)
. . . . . . . . contrast most evident in a and e - bowl of a looks pen-formed
. . . . . . dynamism
. . . . . . . . seen in b (no spur on bottom, bowl is not circular), otherwise largely static
. . . . . . details
. . . . . . . . diagonals in Q tail, a tail, r arm, t top
. . . . . . . . descenders on cap J, Q
. . . . other design features
. . . . . . E/F arms are even
. . . . . . R leg is curved kickstand
. . . . . . O/o appear perfectly circular
. . . . . . M has vertical sides, high middle vertex
. . . . . . chevron K and k
. . . . . . round tittles
. . . . . . round counters have flat stem side
. . Optima
. . . . date
. . . . . . 1952-58
. . . . designer
. . . . . . Hermann Zapf, Stempel
. . . . intended use
. . . . . . originally display, but adapted for text
. . . . design sources
. . . . . . Italian Renaissance inscriptions
. . . . “humanism” comes from
. . . . . . proportions
. . . . . . . . varied, classical: Trajan Column as model for cap proportions
. . . . . . . . two-storey a and g
. . . . . . stress
. . . . . . . . clear contrast
. . . . . . . . stress follows patterns of variation like transitional types: vertical in most letters, but diagonal in J, K, M, N, f, j, k, m, n, s, u, v, w, x
. . . . . . dynamism
. . . . . . . . flare can add some sense of leading to next letter
. . . . . . details
. . . . . . . . cap J, Q descend
. . . . . . . . top of t slanted
. . . . other design features
. . . . . . alternates include sloped-sided and vertical-sided M
. . . . . . strokes flare to approximate serifs
. . . . . . bowl counters are ovals
. . . . . . round tittles
. . Syntax Antiqua
. . . . date
. . . . . . 1968
. . . . designer
. . . . . . Hans Eduard Meier, Stempel
. . . . intended use
. . . . . . general purpose
. . . . design sources
. . . . . . oldstyle seriffed types
. . . . “humanism” comes from
. . . . . . proportions
. . . . . . . . classical
. . . . . . . . two-storey a and g
. . . . . . stress
. . . . . . . . largely monoline, but horizontals generally thinner than verticals (optical compensation)
. . . . . . . . a and especially g show more contrast
. . . . . . dynamism
. . . . . . . . 1/2 degree slope
. . . . . . . . asymmetrical arches (h, m, n, etc.)
. . . . . . details
. . . . . . . . terminals end perpindicular to stroke
. . . . . . . . a has tail
. . . . other design features
. . . . . . square tittles
. . . . . . chevron K and k
. . . . . . J does not descend
. . . . . . M is sloped on sides
. . . . . . round counters have flat stem side
. . Frutiger
. . . . date
. . . . . . 1976
. . . . designer
. . . . . . Adrian Frutiger, Linotype
. . . . intended use
. . . . . . originally, airport signage (as “Roissy”)
. . . . design sources
. . . . . . Univers + curves of CdG airport architecture
. . . . “humanism” comes from
. . . . . . proportions
. . . . . . . . two-story a (one-storey g)
. . . . . . stress
. . . . . . . . quite monoline
. . . . . . dynamism
. . . . . . . . largely static, though short overhang of a, short underhang of e add some asymmetry
. . . . . . details
. . . . . . . . angled top of t
. . . . other design features
. . . . . . square tittles
. . . . . . oval bowl counters
. . . . . . wide apertures