Hermann Zapf

Type Designer

On June 4, 2015, the typographic world lost an iconic figure. Hermann Zapf died in Darmstadt, Germany, aged 96. As a type designer, calligrapher, author and teacher, Zapf was unique. His eye for harmony and detail was uncanny; his flexibility in designing for changing technologies exemplary. In a career spanning over seven decades, Zapf designed dozens of timeless classics, including the Palatino, Optima, and Zapfino typeface families — types that were modern yet true to tradition, and always elegant. He is survived by his widow, fellow type designer, calligrapher and bookbinder Gudrun Zapf-von Hesse, now 97.

My Fonts interviewed some of the people who knew him well — type designers who worked in close collaboration with a man they admired and loved. Read more here: www.myfonts.com/newsletters/cc/201506.html

Hermann Zapf font designs:

PalatinokompaktOptimaMedicizapf BookZapf InternationalsaphirZapfino

 

RIP Hermann Zapf, your elegant and timeless fonts will be remembered and used by designers all around the world forever xx