January 22, 2007
100 best typefaces, final result.
Jürgen Siebert of FontShop Germany has just announced the result of the search for the 100 best typefaces. The website, 100besteschriften, will be online very soon. The brochure in pdf form is already available for download at 100besteschriften. So far, there is only a German version, but with plenty of pictures.
I can proudly announce that three of my faces made it: ITC Officina at number 8, FF Meta at 18 and FF Info at 53. This occasion seemed appropriate to republish a few remarks about the history behind Officina Display.
Maith thú!
Posted by: Conor Nolan at January 23, 2007 12:04 AMI hope those Irish words mean something nice. They probably sound like the German word "hatschiii", which is the sound we make when we sneeze, in German.
Posted by: erik spiekermann at January 23, 2007 12:25 AMITC Officina is really a wonderful typeface. Congratultions!
Posted by: rdl at January 23, 2007 3:26 AMHi Erik,
The link to the PDF doesnt seem to work for me. Congrats!
Péter
Posted by: zwoelf at January 23, 2007 9:53 AMit means 'well done'. Go raimh maith agat is the rather long winded 'thank you' or Sláinte is cheers
Posted by: joely hegarty at January 23, 2007 12:51 PMI had to take it off; it was only supposed to be available later on the 24th. That's why the FontShop link was off as well.
It'll be active again tomorrow.
Posted by: erik spiekermann at January 23, 2007 5:18 PMI hoped the Irish would mean something nice.
Thanks, Joely
hello mr. spiekermann!
my name is david and i have been asked to do a report on you and i am quite excited. If you could tell me a fun story or some ohter info about yourself so that i can get an "a" on my paper. i would greatly appreciate it! oh and congratulations on ITC Officina! Thanks!
Sorry, David, but that is the wrong approach. I could tell you hundreds of stories, and some may even be funny. You are supposed to learn about type and typography by writing that report. So you need to do some proper research, not just copy and paste a few funny stories from me. Apart from the fact that i do not have the time to tell stories to everybody who just asks.
There are quite a few older pieces in the archives on this blog that address questions students have been asking me over and over. You should read those. And you should read other stuff about me which may be in the books i have written or in other publications. Then, when you have proper and well-considered questions, i'll be very happy to answer them. Perhaps even in public on this blog.
Posted by: erik spiekermann at January 24, 2007 6:41 PMCongrats on making it into the top 10! Officina is certainly worthy of the honor, and in good company (and beating out Univers!).
As I don't read German, could anyone who does tell me (if the information is provided on the site/pdf) who desgined the brochure? I'm really digging it.
Posted by: Dan Lurie at January 25, 2007 9:20 AMThe brochure was designed by Moniteurs:
http://www.moniteurs.de.
thank you Mr. Spiekermann for assuming that i am a student who does nothing more than copy stories from this blog to insert into my paper. Also i have done the research on you, have read the previous blog from this site, and i have read of course your books. i merely wanted something a little more personal for the other students in my class during my presentation on you so i wouldnt have a normal report on a typographer but at any rate thanks for your lack of help!
Posted by: david at January 29, 2007 6:01 AMPlease understand that
a: this is not the place for that sort of conversation and
b: it is much easier to answer specific questions than telling "spontaneous" stories where i would never know whether they would even be of any interest to you, let alone anybody else reading this blog.
When people write to me with a concise question, i always answer, although i get dozens of these enquiries a week and do have a day-job.
It is too much trouble finding my email address and formulating something that i can answer directly?
Congratulations! I do think they deserve higher ratings, specially Meta.
For English 100besteschriften site, I searched "100besteschriften" and clicked the "Translate this page" link next to the first result at Google. Now I'm reading in English.
Posted by: Böke Yüzgen at February 22, 2007 2:13 PM@David
Hasn't it sunk in yet? Surely those who will grade your paper will be more interested in solid research, rather than a bespoke "funny story" from Spiekermann. If you have any real interest in type, then the research should be a joy. If you want specific Spiekermann quotes, then search this blog or Google it.
Funny stories and anecdotes will not set your paper apart; sound research and a passion for type will.
Posted by: johno at October 4, 2007 8:35 AMnice one! i just purchased ff info display regular on fontshop.com after viewing 'Helvetica' and hearing your views on the all-too-pervasive font. i then logically hypothesized that you are the type of person who does not offer a contrary view without offering an alternative. i was not wrong. ff info, ff meta, itc officina. all of these are absolutely wonderful replacements for that swiss modern 'thing.'
Posted by: kris gale at March 2, 2008 11:39 PM