COUNTER

FORMS
by Ryan Christian Peña
Table of Contents
Clarendon
Baskervile
Helvetica
Gill Sans
Caslon
Futura
Didot
CLARENDON
Clarendon, created in 1845 by Robert Besley for the Fann Street
Foundry in England, was named after the esteemed Clarendon
Press in Oxford. This typeface, falling between the heavy An-
tique/Egyptian and lighter Roman styles, features a balanced
weight and rounded brackets, giving it a simple yet elegant de-
Robert Besley, 1845 sign. Despite a three-year patent, Clarendon became widely cop-
ied and popular, leading to versions that are still in use today.
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BASKERVILLE
Baskerville is a typeface created by John Baskerville in 1754 in
Birmingham, England. It is known for its sharp edges, strong
contrast, and balanced proportions. Considered a transitional
typeface, it falls between classical and modern styles. Developed
through ongoing experiments with printing technology, it be-
John Baskerville, 1745 came an elegant choice for books and typographic compositions.
Even today, appreciated for its clear readability and timeless
beauty, making it a classic typeface that has endured over time.
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HELVETICA
Helvetica is a simple and modern font created in the 1950s by
Swiss designers Max Miedinger and Eduard Hoffmann. Originally
called Neue Haas Grotesk, it became known for its clear and uni-
form letters without extra decorations. Helvetica gained popularity
in graphic design, especially in advertising and branding during the
1960s and 1970s. It became widely used worldwide and is consid-
Max Mieding & Eduard Hoffman, 1950s ered a classic, despite some saying it’s used too much. In the digital
age, it’s adapted for web use due to its readability on small screens.
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GILL SANS
Gill Sans, created in 1926 by Eric Gill, has its origins in the type-
face designed by his teacher Edward Johnston for the London Un-
derground Railway in 1913. Gill aimed to improve upon Johnston
Sans for better legibility. After experimenting with lettering in 1926,

Eric Gill, 1926

he caught the attention of Stanley Morison from Monotype, who
commissioned him to create a font similar to Futura. Released in
1928 as Gill Sans, it quickly gained popularity and was adopted by
railways and later used by the BBC in their logo starting from 1997.
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 CASLON
Caslon, designed by William Caslon in the early 18th century,
marked the rise of English typography during the Age of Enlight-
enment in London, possibly around 1772. Originally created for the
New Testament, it was the first English typeface and gained popu-

William Caslon, early 18th century larity in the American colonies, appearing in The Declaration of
Independence. Caslon is an Old Style typeface with distinct features
like bracketed serifs, slightly angled head serifs, and short ascend-
ers and descenders, setting a new standard for legibility in its time.
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FUTURA
Futura, created by the German type designer Paul Renner in 1927,
was commissioned by the Bauer Type Foundry for the New Frankfurt
project, an affordable modernist housing initiative. The typeface re-
flects the geometric Bauhaus design style, prevalent from 1919 to 1933,
emphasizing simplicity, modernity, and functional geometry. Inspired
by the Bauhaus ideology of prioritizing function over unnecessary
Paul Renner, 1927 ornamentation, Futura features clean and straightforward shapes,
aligning with Renner’s belief in stripping forms down to their essence.
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 DIDOT
The Didot typeface comes from the Didot family, well-known French
printers. The popular versions were made between 1784 and 1811. Di-
dot falls into the modern category and was inspired by John Baskerville’s
experiments. The family used these typefaces when they set up the first
printing press in Greece. Didot has a high contrast between thin and thick
strokes, and sometimes it’s not very easy to read online. It’s better suited
Didot Family, between 1784 - 1811 for branding, like in fashion magazines, than for reading long paragraphs.
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