Typeface Book by Dani Choi

Meta :

Aa Jj Rr 1 ! [ k t

Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 @ # $ % ^ & * ( ] \ : ; ’ , . n l q r o p v u y z w x b c d e f g h i

Ii Qq Zz 0 ) m s j a

origins

In 1984, the German State Post Office, the Budespost, was persuaded by Erik Spiekermann of MetaDesign to commission a new, exclusive font for use on all of the Budespostâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s printed material. The aim of the project, which began in 1985, was to develop a face that was easy to read in small sizes, available in several weights, unmistakable as an identity, and technologically up-to-date. Although the font was digitized, tested, and approved in the summer of 1985, the project was canceled. The Bundespost returned to using one of its many previous typefaces, Helvetica, assuming that digital type would not catch on.

In 1989, after design software made creating new fonts more efficient, MetaDesign refined the Bundespost typeface for its own exclusive use, renaming it Meta. Initially, Meta was just used for in-house projects, but soon MetaDesign began to use it in mail-order catalogs for FontShop, a digital type foundry, confounded by Erik Spiekermann. FontShop encouraged the parent company to license the face. Released as FF Meta, it has become one of the most successful typefaces available from FonFont, a subsidiary of FontShop. b

origins | 3

erik spiekermann

â&#x20AC;&#x153; I had a little printing press and taught myself to set typeâ&#x20AC;? when I was twelve.

Erik Spiekermann, born in 1947, calls himself an information architect. He is equally comfortable and prolific as a writer, graphic and typeface designer, but type is always at the epicenter of this communication dynamo. Even as a child, Spiekermann was drawn to the typographic arts.

a board member of ATypI. His book, Stop Stealing Sheep, first published in 1993, has sold over 150,000 copies and is currently in its second edition. He withdrew from the management of MetaDesign in 2000 to work on a new project: The United Designers Network, a collaboration of many designers he has worked with over the years. c

In 1988, Spiekermann started FontShop, a digital typeface foundry and distributor of fonts. Spiekermann currently holds a professorship at the Academy of Arts in Bremen, is vice president of the German Design council, president of the International Institute of Information Design, president of the International Society of Typographic Designers and erik spiekermann | 5

characteristics

E F J K S R angled finials

angled finials

extended base

Angled finials occur in the top strokes of the E, F, G, and on both ends of the S. The E has an extended base, while the base of the G has no spur and the J, no loop. The K has one junction, and the junction of the M rests on the baseline, like Helvetica, except that Meta stems are oblique. The tail of the Q is wavy and the leg of the R is slightly curved. The junction and base of the W are both flat. The Z has angled finials on both ends, unlike the lowercase z, which has an upright finial at the top and an angled one at the bottom.

only one junction

no loop

angled finial

slightly curved leg

angled finial

6 | characteristics

G Q Z

angled finials

no spur

wavy tail

angled final

l my ascenders bent at the top

stem slightly bent

Several of Meta lowercase have particular traits that distinguish the face from other sans serifs. The ascenders of the b, k, h, and l are slightly bent at the top, a feature that is carried through the stems of the m, n, p, q, and the spur of the u. The finials of the v, w, and y are slightly angles, unlike the Meta family capital letters. d

finials slightly angled

characteristics | 7

Meta is a humanist sans serif.

Humanist sans-serif typefaces are characterized by the presence of the hand. They are calligraphic in structure, often with higher stroke contrast than other sans serifs. They have open forms that lead the eye horizontally, making them the best sans serifs for long reading and small text.

crossbar slightly above baseline crossbar on four thinner than crossbar on two

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 upper case figures

8 | characteristics

02 thin center

The numbers of Meta are also very unique. The upper case figures are slightly below capital height while lower case figures are lower below capital height. The weight of crossbar also varies from number to number. For instance, crossbar on four is thinner than crossbar on two. Generally, uppercase numbers are thinner than lower case numbers.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 lower case figures

characteristics | 9

helvetica regular