Today, I would like to introduce “Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era: The Backstage of Type, Photo-Typesetting, and Digital Font Design According to Typeface Designer, Kazuo Hashimoto,” written by Akari Yuki.
Through an interview with Kazuo Hashimoto, who has been creating and editing typeface over the three generations of type, photo-typesetting, and digital fonts, and building the important parts of typefaces, the content of this book deals with the flow of Japanese typeface.
The book describes how Mr. Hashimoto created various typefaces and how they were used in the environment of each era, as well as detailed accounts of on-site typeface creation connected to the present day. I read the book while reviewing my daily work.
Reading sections that describe differences between calligraphy and lettering characters, what is required for characters as typeface, and how to create high-quality typefaces, I often felt that I’d thought I understood but actually didn’t in terms a lack of awareness of what a set of “typeface” is while creating a character.
The book is filled with Mr. Hashimoto’s words to those who are creators of and associated with typeface.
Even in the typeface design flow and history, which are thought of as rigid and inflexible, thanks to the extensive explanations of technical terms and illustrations on each page, this book is recommended for anybody who may want to get to know a bit more about Japanese typeface or become a typeface creator in the future.
Related to “Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era,” here’s a comment from Mr. Suzuki of our company regarding the selected book.
Reading two books – “Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era” and “Story of the Typeface I Created” – enables you to glance over the design history of Japanese typeface from photo-typesetting to digital font. For the size of the role played by both Kazuo Hashimoto and Masahiko Kozuka, I ask you to read the books. I think that the documentation of important typefaces not included in these books and the stories of their creators is a future task.
For the last ten-odd years, the exposure of Osamu Torinoumi of JIYUKOBO Ltd., and Shigenobu Fujita of Fontworks Inc. sticks out. There are strikingly few situations where the efforts of the superior typeface designers of the same generation – Kazuo Kanai, Yutaka Sato, and Kikuchi Imada – are discussed.
Given that the work of Mr. Hashimoto and Mr. Kozuka is in the genealogy of metal type, I think that the presence of lettering and photo-typesetting has influenced the typeface designers of the next generation, including Mr. Torinoumi to no small extent. In the sense of thinking about techniques to make typeface and the background of the times, the value of “Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era” and “Story of the Typeface I Created” is high.
Book Information:
“Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era: The Backstage of Type, Photo-Typesetting, and Digital Font Design According to Typeface Designer, Kazuo Hashimoto”
Author: Akari Yuki
Publisher: Graphic-sha Publishing Co., Ltd.
Purchase Information:
http://www.graphicsha.co.jp/detail.html?p=43075
Book Information:
“Story of the Typeface I Created: Type and Photo-Typesetting, and the Design of Kozuka Typeface”
Author: Masahiko Kozuka
Publisher: Graphic-sha Publishing Co., Ltd.
Purchase Information:
http://www.graphicsha.co.jp/detail.html?p=30248
(RK)
Series archive Recommended Book / From TP’s Stack
- From TP’s Stack: “Creation of Typefaces That Open a New Era”
- From TP’s Stack: “The Kawaraban of Edo – Identity of Media That Enfevered the Common People”
- From TP’s Stack: “Creation of Typefaces”
- From TP’s Stack: “Cultural History of the Character”
- From TP’s Stack: “The History of Mincho Typeface”
- From TP’s Stack: “Characters of Prayers” and “Characters of Cities”
- From TP’s Stack: “The World of Edo Books: Publishing Situation in Edo Read by Kibyōshi”
- From TP’s Stack: “Portrait of 34 Great Craftsmen”
- From TP’s Stack: “The History of Japanese Lettering”
- From TP’s Stack: “Johnston’s Underground Type”
- From TP’s Stack: “The Beauty of Characters and the Power of Characters”
- From TP’s Stack: “It’s Still Railroad Letters”