They then imported these into graphicdesign program adobe illustrator, and worked to fill in the gaps. Speaking at gigaom s roadmap, he explained what he meant and offered other insights into how he sees the world of design. Erik spiekermann born 30 may 1947 in stadthagen, lower saxony is a german typographer, designer and writer. Madeleine morley visits the berlin studio of revered typographer erik spiekermann for a master class in letterpress printing erik spiekermann in his berlin home. Since 2015 he pursues a phd on the history of digital type design technologies at the university of reading. He is an honorary professor at the university of the. Wir drucken krautreporter from erik spiekermann on vimeo.
Even as a child, spiekermann was drawn to the typographic arts. Currently, he works as a professor at the university of arts bremen. Its nice that some design colleges still have metal type alongside the macintosh, even if they have nothing in between. As a methodology, its aim is to nurture emergence of the previously unthinkable as possibilities or prospects through. A traditional graphic design agency or something different. With erik spiekermann he explores the possibilities of postdigital letterpress printing at p98a. Erik spiekermann is art historian, information architect, type designer and author. He is behind the design of wellknow brands such as audi, bosch, vw, german railways and heidelberg printing. How a brand speaks, how it presents itself, cannot be left to the unpredictable mood of the marketplace or some design trend. Interview with erik spiekermann and ralph du carrois fontshop. Linotype germany na linotype is the source for original typeface design and font software.
Sep 25, 2014 erik spiekermann, born 1947, studied history of art and english in berlin. Erik spiekermann is an information architect, type designer ff meta, itc officina, ff info, ff unit, lotype, berliner grotesk, and many corporate typefaces, and author. Apple font beautiful as typeface, totally sucks as an. Interviewees in helvetica include some of the most illustrious and innovative names in the design world, including erik spiekermann, matthew carter. Listen to him finding handy analogies to music, the rhythm of spaces and the. Erik spiekermann creates digital fonts from unfinished bauhaus. He worked as a freelance graphic designer from 19721979 before returning to berlin to cofound metadesign. A brief overview of developments in digital type design medium. Jul 11, 2014 interviewees in helvetica include some of the most illustrious and innovative names in the design world, including erik spiekermann, matthew carter, massimo vignelli, wim crouwel, hermann zapf. Berlin and erik spiekermann linkedin learning, formerly. Type is a living enti ty integrated into societys moods and trends. He is responsible for corporate design programs for audi, skoda, volkswagen. He designed fira sans for firefox os 20 version in collaboration with carois type design.
Sep 25, 20 14 responses to the hidden power of typeface from design legend erik spiekermann rick jacobs september 27, 20 some may view this as arcane, but this level of sensitivity to the value contribution of the right font seems to be a diminishing in relation to the attention paid to dimensional symbology and overbearing design system elements. Erik spiekermann makes a deep impression by marrying new. Erik spiekermann, greek version by panos haratzopoulos fonts. The fonts were developed by a team of international typographers and design students, led by renowned type designer erik spiekermann. After an extensive career as graphic designer, typeface designer, author, and entrepreneur, erik spiekermann returns to his beginnings. Once we had finished restoring our johannisberger stopcylinder press from 1924, we were looking for projects to test the machine. Erik spiekermanns name is ubiquitous in graphic design and the world of typography, perhaps hes best known for the signage berliners see everyday he created the passenger information for the bvg berlin transit and the current deutsche bahn aesthetic as well as campaigns for audi, volkswagen and nokia. New eden a book celebrating great game environment design. Erik spiekermann talking with gestalten tv about the process of designing typefaces. Making four aluminium bases to get the thin plates to the height of metal type 23. Here he talks with elliot jay stocks about how typography is used in the digital domain and what digital designers can learn from. German type designer erik spiekermann, created this sans fontfont between 1991 and 2010.
Erik spiekermann internationally renowned graphic designer, typographer and type designer. Type designer ralph du carrois and spiekermann based fira on the mozilla foundations own house face, ff meta, making it wider thus more legible on smaller screens. In sams talk, he references the importance of typography in metro if you have any interest in this topic, i think youll also enjoy this short film featuring the godfather of modern type, erik spiekermann. Swinburne university of technology prahran 2011 this is my first ever kinetic typography project, completely done by after effects. Robert wakeman usa na robert wakeman is a wellknown and respected type director. He founded the multidisciplinary design consultancy metadesign in berlin, 1979.
See more ideas about font shop, typography poster and lime green paints. When i suggested to the friends at krautreporter that perhaps we could print one special issue, they immediately went for that crazy idea. Type legend erik spiekermann designs graph paper you can wear. She developed more than 300 text and display typefaces with such respected and worldrenowned type designers as sumner stone, erik spiekermann, jill. It consists of a series of practical designrelated tools for achieving this. Jul 30, 2015 ferdinand ulrich is a berlinbased typographer and type historian. May 16, 2018 a typical type design desktop situation from the late 1980s. Helvetica is about typography, graphic design, and global visual culture. In the words of graphic designer and typographer erik spiekermann, typography is incurable but not lethal. It is a slightly wider and calmer adaptation of spiekermann s typeface meta, optimized for legibility on small. Spiekerman manages to convey his mindset and thoughts over typography in a brief and humorous manner, without compromising on substance. Throughout his illustrious career as a designer and typographer, erik spiekermann has created dozens of commercial typefaces ff meta, ff metaserif, itc officina, ff govan, ff info, ff unit, lotype, berliner grotesk and many custom typefaces for worldrenowned corporations.
Reconstructed from erik spiekermanns collection, photographed by. Typographer and designer erik spiekermann in discussion with adobe product vp jeff veen about the importance of typeface in the digital age. Spiekermann worked with type designer christian schwartz to develop bosch sans and serif as part of a. In 1979 he cofounded metadesign, followed by fontshop in 1989 with joan spiekermann and edenspiekermann in 2002 with susanna dulkinys. He is an honorary professor at the university of the arts bremen and artcenter college of design. He had already finished designing a book for louis rossetto, one of the founders of wired magazine and a longtime friend. Top 11 quotes of erik spiekermann famous quotes and. This month, the preeminent type designer erik spiekermann, together with software company adobe, revealed the first half of a pioneering campaign to revive. He is author, information architect, type designer ff meta, itc officina, ff info, ff unit, lotype, berliner grotesk and many corporate typefaces and author of books and articles on type and typography. Since 2008 she is a managing partner of type tailors a design firm specialised in custom typeface design, software, and typographic consultancy for brands and product manufacturers, serving a wide range of the worlds leading enterprises and brands. Jurg lehni interviews erik spiekermann about the legal definition of typefaces.
Metadesign or metadesign is an emerging conceptual framework aimed at defining and creating social, economic and technical infrastructures in which new forms of collaborative design can take place. In 1979 he cofounded metadesign, followed by fontshop in 1989 with joan spiekermann and. Erik spiekermann was inducted into the european design awards hall of fame and became the first designer to receive the honor. Spiekermann is considered a very influential personality in the field of typeface design and information design. Erik spiekermann is a typographer, type designer, and author. Erik spiekermann, born 1947, studied history of art and english in berlin. Erik spiekermann calls himself an information architect.
He is responsible for corporate design programs for audi, skoda. It is a network of designers in several places, but it is also a company in berlin with 7 partners and 20 designers. Education erik completed his degree in art history at the berlin free university. The students at the bauhaus were given exercises to draw. Erik spiekermann creates digital fonts from unfinished. He was founder 1979 of metadesign, germanys largest design. Noted designer erik spiekermann has called apples typeface choice a youthful folly. When i design a magazine or a book or a newspaper, i need to consider. Erik splits his time between berlin and san francisco and london, where his son dylan lives. Internationally renowned graphic designer, typographer and type designer. It looks at a single typefaceone that, for better or worse, has dominated the graphic arts world since its creation in 1957in a conversation about the way type affects our lives.
Erik spiekermann claims that the web is more type than anything. Erik spiekermann is an information architect, type designer, and author of books and articles on type and typography. Type legend erik spiekermann designs graph paper you can wear its the german typographers first foray into fashion design. Erik and lilith printing the orbit poster for a client at galerie p98a. Jul 14, 2011 this year, he was awarded the federal republic of germanys 2011 design prize for lifetime achievements a most noble accomplishment.
For the past 25 years, hes worked with some of the most demanding and fastidious creative directors and art directors. A student of art history, he has many fonts, awards and achievements to his name. A typical type design desktop situation from the late 1980s. Erik spiekermann in a visual biography of his life in type and design, erik spiekermann is interviewed about his work we have an extract, along with a spiekermann timeline 01112014 12. The exhibition, erik spiekermann, the face of type recently took place at the bauhausarchive museum of design in berlin. A typical type design desktop situation from the late 1980s, comprised of an apple macintosh that runs ikarus m software, keyboard and mouse, letterform. Erik spiekermann erik spiekermann is one of the most renowned german designer and typographer. Do you think there is any benefit these days in knowing how to use metal type. Erik spiekermann ff meta 19841991 not on view in 1984 the deutsche bundespost west german post office commissioned a typeface from sedley place design, the office where spiekermann worked. For erik spiekermann, it came down to the color of black and a kiss of type. They required a neutral, spacesaving typeface that would be legible when printed very small on a postage stamp but also appropriate for use on mailboxes. Design adobe is releasing five fonts based on designs by prolific bauhaus figures, which have been revived by german typographer erik spiekermann and a group of students. The story of erik spiekermanns ff meta not to be confused with. For 9 years, she was director of typeface development at the international typeface corporation itc in new york city.
See more ideas about typography, lettering and font shop. Erik spiekermann on why type is brand creative bloq. He is an information architect, type designer ff meta, itc officina, ff info, ff unit, lotype, and berliner grotesk plus many exclusive corporate typefaces, and the author of books, articles, and regularly appearing columns on type, typography, and other cultural issues for magazines such as. He is equally comfortable and prolific as a writer, graphic and typeface designer, but type is always at the epicenter of this communication dynamo. Erik spiekermann ideasondesign design is difference. The hidden power of typeface from design legend erik. Be sure to check back next week for even more topnotch connected design talks from roadmap 20. Organised by london branding agency construct, the session brought together. Adobe has created five fonts from the lost lettering of. Top 11 quotes of erik spiekermann famous quotes and sayings.
May 09, 2019 since 2008 she is a managing partner of type tailors a design firm specialised in custom typeface design, software, and typographic consultancy for brands and product manufacturers, serving a wide range of the worlds leading enterprises and brands. Watch erik spiekermanns type is visible language talk design. In partnership with adobe, a german designer has resurrected. Erik spiekermann makes a deep impression by marrying new to old. Fonts from the type designer erik spiekermann in use. Dont expect a handson book, but rather a book that will layon the foundations for your further involvement with typography. Fira sans initially called feura sans is a humanist sansserif typeface designed by erik spiekermann, ralph du carrois, anja meiners and botio nikoltchev of carrois type design. Ferdinand ulrich is a berlinbased typographer and type historian. He was born on may 30, 1947 in stadthagen, lower saxony, germany. He is author, information architect, type designer ff meta, itc officina, ff info, ff unit. Looking at type from the basic shapes to the finest details is the first step toward understanding how type works.
He founded the multidisciplinary design consultancy metadesign in berlin, 1979, opening a major san francisco office in 1992, and another in zurich. Nov 17, 2017 for erik spiekermann, it came down to the color of black and a kiss of type. Since 2010 he has been collaborating with ralph du carrois and erik spiekermann as type designer and art director at carrois type design, focusing on cyrillic, greek and arabic language extensions and ci projects. Interview with designer and typographer, erik spiekermann. Spiekermann studied art history at berlin s free university, funding himself by running a letterpress printing press in the basement of. In 1984 the deutsche bundespost west german post office commissioned a typeface from sedley place design, the office where spiekermann worked. Erik spiekermann, greek version by panos haratzopoulos. Interviewees in helvetica include some of the most illustrious and innovative names in the design world, including erik spiekermann, matthew carter, massimo vignelli, wim crouwel, hermann zapf. Spiekermann is an honorary professor at the university of the arts in bremen, the author of the adobe press title, stop stealing. A brief overview of developments in digital type design.
He had already finished designing a book for louis rossetto, one. Born in 1947 in stadthagen, erik studied art history at berlins free university, selffunding his degree by running a letterpress in the basement of his home. As the company expands across the globe, db type is now also available for the cyrillic and greek alphabets. Last week, i spent the day with erik spiekermann, who invited a small group into his berlinbased print workshop, p98a, for an introduction to the letterpress. Helvetica encompasses the worlds of design, advertising, psychology, and communication, and invites us to take a second look at the thousands of words we see every day. In 2014, botio founded his own type foundry lettersoup. Oct 03, 2014 erik spiekermann erik spiekermann is one of the most renowned german designer and typographer. Erik spiekermann is information architect, type designer and author. Two of his typefaces, ff meta and itc officina, are considered to be modern classics. This year, he was awarded the federal republic of germanys 2011 design prize for lifetime achievements a most noble accomplishment.
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