Les Contrepoincons

Description

Western typography is still dominated by typefaces designed during the hundred years or so following the advent of printing. What are the processes behind these forms? This book presents a very precise study of the achievements of French and Flemish punch engravers in the XVIIIth century. Based on his own experience in the execution of typefaces and on a thorough analysis of the surviving artifacts, Fred Smeijers shatters the antediluvian conceptions that have permeated the subject.
In his introduction, he raises fundamental questions about lettering and type design. The final chapters deal with current technical and social developments.