Reina (working title)

Martin Silvertant

It seems I've glanced over a couple of posts. First off, thanks a lot for the high-res scan of Romanée, George!

Jackson, I should have clarified I wasn't planning on ordering the original. Rather, somehow I expected there to be a modern reprint. I did find copies of the original on AbeBooks but I'm not prepared to pay the prices they're asking right now.

However, I did find "Trinité & Lexicon"—which seems to be set in Romanée unless I'm misunderstanding the description—on Nijhof & Lee for 35 euro, so thanks for the suggestion. Wes, do you happen to own the book? The description on Nijhof & Lee is rather confusing. https://bijzonderecollecties.hexspoorwms.nl/EN/webshop/nijhof-en-lee/trinité-en-lexicon/49441&page=
It states it was technically impossible to include the hand-set specimen, and later it states the illustrations of Lexicon were not included. What isn't included, what is and is it still worth getting?

The Stroke among others, and they offer a more complete analysis.

I own The Stroke. I was rather pleased it's set in Ruse, which I found to be a joy to read. It may not be completely invisible, but I don't mind as I like seeing it and didn't find it to be obtrusive. I've heard others don't like Ruse though. I'm curious what you guys think of it.

I suppose I will clarify why I named Trinité, Ruse and Geronimo. There are some equally dark typefaces like Satyr, but when it comes to its character, I think Trinité is one of a kind, and Reina is too much like it. On a side note, on may way to school I always pass this little book store that has lettering in Trinité on its window. I always get in a good mood when I see it and always point the store out to whoever is with me. I suppose I can be tedious about my interests.

As for Ruse, it may not be that obvious, but Trinité is in there and I feel Geronimo is in there and provided those really have been inspirations, I can suppose more TEFF typefaces have been an inspiration for this design. If you imagine an interpolation between Trinité and Ruse, I think this is more or less what it would look like. Letters like /e and /a seem to depart from Trinité into the sentiment of Ruse, where the /e becomes more blocky and more Didone-like in its shape, and while the /a clearly deviates from either, the terminal is exaggerated just like in Ruse. I also think the design of the top serifs is an attempt to deviate from Trinité and bring some of that simplicity as seen in Ruse and Collis, while maintaining the diagonal cut of Trinité in the serifs. The one element which really made me suspect Ruse was an inspiration though is the capital R. Where else do you find such a leg in book typefaces? Clarendons and Didones are too mechanical.

The reason I named Geronimo is simply because of the spur in /J. To me that's so specific. I actually love that feature and I was planning on adding it to a future typeface sometime and don't feel worried doing that, but when you see such a specific element in a typeface and you also notice both Trinité and Ruse, I think you can be pretty sure what the inspirations for this typeface were: TEFF typefaces. There's nothing wrong with that per sé, but as I said before the inspirations are too obvious, so I do think if the design of this typeface is continued (and I do still think it has potential and probably shouldn't be completely abandoned), a more unique character should be established. No more looking at other typefaces.

Wes Adams

I agree Martin and to my eyes the /a/c/f/r finials are quite 19th century. Combined with Trinite's rather heavy text serifs, as here, the design unexpectedly seems to inch in the direction of a Clarendon (and by that I suppose I meant the entire category of vertically stressed slab serifs, though to say it may be historically inaccurate and an oversimplification). The encouraging bit, to me, is that by combining these alternative constructions something with a mild historical connotation might result. One way forward could be to settle on a historical model or single method of construction.

As for Trinite and Lexicon, the book consists of two sections providing context for the designs of those types. Each section is followed by several pages of restrained type specimens. My understanding is that the Trinite half was originally printed in another book, also by De Does, entitled Trinite and Romanee which was produced on his own private imprint, Spectatorpers. I have not seen that one: my experience is that the Spectatorpers books are quite hard to come by.

The bit about Romanee's technical constraints must refer to the fact that the type is not digital and exists only in metal. Though its conceivable a facsimile might have been produced from the original book or that the Romanee sections, printed separately, might have been bound together with the other sections, the publisher has elected not to go that route. The writing itself is in De Does own voice (rendered by translation) and modestly extends the descriptions found in his monograph by Mattheiu Lommen.

That there is not a digital version of Romanee is not entirely accurate. Teff (whom I understand shares the rights with Van Krimpen's estate) has been working on one for at least a decade and it was in fact used to set the Van Krimpen exhibition catalog Adieu Aesthetica. Perhaps it was not offered to Buitenkant or else has been adapted from the original to the extent it would not be a satisfying basis for comparison. Now that I think about it, it might be neat to see those two versions side by side. I'm willing to do some scans if you're interested. I think Fred Smeijers provided the new Romanee design though I'm not sure which optical size was his basis.

George Horton

Jason Dewinetz of the Greenboathouse Press also made a digital Romanee. Printed from photopolymer, it's used alongside foundry Romanee in his edition of First Principles of Typography.

George Horton

I've got the Neponset now. The contrast available (unless you use an overfeed and apply heavy pressure) is still rather less than you'll have seen in classic flex-pen calligraphy, but both thicks and thins are heavier with the Neponset than with the Nib Creaper. It feels very different to use, being much larger, and seems less prone to railroading but more prone to not producing anything at all at the start of strokes. That problem is mostly solved by writing at a less perpendicular angle to the paper than suits the Nib Creaper, but this has the disadvantage of making horizontal thin strokes thinner than vertical thin strokes - OK if you're making a vertically-stressed Modern, less OK if you're not. But I haven't used it enough to build the muscle memory you seem to need to use a flex pen, and which you certainly need with the Nib Creaper. I do mostly like it so far.

Nathan Pamulaya

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I really appreciate it.

Sorry I failed to be online. My computer suddenly broke before I could make a backup (not to mention the frustration it brought me), and it took me more than a year to be able to get a new one.

The reason why the design ended up being Trinité-dominated is because I experimented way too much, which I shouldn't be doing in the first place.
As of now, I'm still undecided weather to continue this one. But if I happen to do so (some time in the future), I'm going to stick with my original concept which involves elements from: Bodoni, Garamond, and Ibarra Real.

Thanks again for the feedback folks.