5 hidden typeface gems you need to know about

Good news for the modern graphic designer and typographer. From tattoos to global branding schemes, choice of typeface has never been more important.

There is now more freedom than ever before to create typographic expression that goes beyond the mere graphic presentation of text.

Designers and typographers are turning typographic tradition on its head and pushing experimentation into the mainstream.

Here, professional typeface designers hand-pick the less well-known typefaces that excites them the most…

01. TwoPoint, ThreePoint and FourPoint by MuirMcNeil

"In the last couple of years, Hamish Muir and Paul McNeil have been reinventing some amazing concepts within 'parametric type' design," says US designer and co-founder of type foundry Associated Typographics, Michael Cina.

"This is how I entered the world of type design as well, learning from the genius of Wim Crouwel and other greats. What I love about their work is that they use process-based design and execute it with pure skill."

"A lot of times a typeface/system like this can get easily written off, but they present it in a way that demands attention and respect. It also challenges the designer/user to interact with the work and build upon its limitations, which I see as a good thing. True genius."

02. AMC Zing by Jeremy Mickel

"I have a real admiration for the work of Jeremy Mickel's work in general – even though he has abandoned us for LA, the traitor – but I have a special fondness for his AMC Zing from 2012," says designer Erik Brandt.

03. Maison Mono by Timo Gaessner

"This monolined grotesque has been one of my favourite fonts for a while. I don't know if it is a hidden gem, but it is a gem to me," says designer Rejane Dal Bello.

04. BC Liguria by Jan Novák

"BC Liguria is highly typographic while being playful and distorted at the same time," reflects Michael Cina.

"It reads amazingly well and oddly enough, I have not seen anything quite like it. Normally typefaces like this miss the mark in one or more levels but Liguria is well executed from start to finish."

05. Haas Unica / Unica77 by Lineto

"Originally drawn for phototypesetting technology, the typeface was everything Helvetica should have been, but sadly lost to time and a legal battle. Now beautifully re-drawn for the current day by Lineto," say the team at London and New York-based independent type foundry, Colophon Foundry.

The full version of this article first appeared inside Computer Arts issue 242, a typography special that explores the state of contemporary typography. You can grab your copy of Computer Arts 242 here.

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