Type Tuesday

Ever find yourself facing off your computer screen, staring at the stark, white, virtual paper of your preferred word processing software, wondering what type face best reflects the meaning of your message? Do you find yourself wondering if Comic Sans is appropriate for your curriculum vitae? Does Bradley Hand IT really capture that easy, breezy feeling you are hoping to convey in the invitation to your pool party?

For those befuddled by the abundance of type faces there is How to Select Type Faces and How to Use them Correctly brought to you by Intertype Corporation of Brooklyn, New York.

From the introductory chapter: “Every moving force on earth is intangible and invisible – gravity, electricity, elasticity, the expansive power of steam, the dilation of water just before freezing, the explosiveness of dynamite. All we ever see of these forces are their effects on the vehicles through which they operate. In type, the design itself is merely the vehicle by which the spirit is made known to us.” 

The pamphlet goes on to summarize the character and feel of various traditional type faces and offers suggestions for paper that best coveys the lines and balance of the type.

Still fretting over the appropriate type face for your curriculum vitae? Perhaps you should consider Bookface font whose "fine, sturdy intergrity adds much to its always sunny geniality and friendliness."

Jaime Henderson, Archivist