Bodonation

This is an otherwise ordinary 1000 Lire banknote until one starts observing the sketches and writing. On the right says Santa Croce, dated October 3, 1950. The note is vandalised by sketches of a typeface which would later change the world of typography. According to legend, the designer claimed that he had no paper with him when he saw the lettering on the gravestones from the floor of Santa Croce church. The two 1,000 Lire note became his sketch pad for inspiration. Here’s the other one:

The typeface was eventually released as Optima in 1958. It changed type history by blurring the boundaries of sans serif and serif form. It became one of the standard typefaces residing on desktop computers during the digital awakening. Unanticipated by Herman Zapf, the creator, optima has been also been adopted as THE FONT for cosmetics branding.

Many years later (year 2002), at the age of 82, the legendary Herman Zapf would revisit his old design to refresh and update it, together with Akira Kobayashi. Released as Optima Nova, it is updated with new weights, italics, titling caps and special ligatures. (In fact, every re-released typeface under Linotype Platinum is technically amazing while retaining the aesthetics of what made the original typefaces famous).

I have been reading creative type. I have been looking at all the great typefaces ever produced, wondering how much time and dedication went into drawing and creating them. I have also always wondered how could a person like Kobayashi, with his roots in Japan - probably denied of any real contact with historical western type in his early years - come up with a brilliant type family like FF Clifford? After reading the account of how Zapf worked with Kobayashi, I could almost visualise this passionate old man enthusiastically sketching his next typeface in some open air cafe.

That passion is contagious.

Maybe, to find inspiration, I should revisit old churches in Malacca.

By the way, Santa Croce Church at Florence happens to be the burial ground of Galileo, Machiavelli and Michelangelo. The dead had continued to inspire the living. (Well, certainly inspired one famous Dan Brown in his Angels and Demons).

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 11th, 2006 at 8:49 am and is filed under typography. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.