past

present

futura

Paul Renner (1878–1956) lived

through tumultuous industrial and

political change in twentieth-century

Germany. He began his career

as a “book artist” in Munich and

became a member of the Deutscher

Werkbund, where he spoke on the

value of quality in design. He taught

with Georg Trump and Jan Tschichold

at the printing school in Munich,

simultaneously working on the design

of the Futura typeface, before being

dismissed from his teaching post by

the Nazis in 1933. Uncertainty was

the foundation on which his entire

craft was based. Renner was born

in 1878, one of five sons, and spent

his childhood under the control

of his theologian father. Although

he enjoyed a solid education, he

emerged with no clear ideals and

felt he inhabited “an artificial world

that stood alongside the real one.”

Though he had no particular goals in

sight, the real world offered Renner

sustenance in the form of painting

commissions, including landscapes

for the magazine Simplicissimus

in Munich, where he was to settle

with his wife Annie. In 1907 he

became a father, and so sought a

steady income, beginning as a book

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book

profiledesigner at Georg Müller Verlag.

Starting with the design of book

spines and occasional text illustra-

tions, Renner focused on the search

for a balance between typography

and illustration. He participated in

debates on the utilitarian nature

of book design at the Deutscher

Werkbund and similar forums. It

seems that he had an innate capacity

for hard work: in 1913, Müller and

Renner oversaw the publication of

some 287 new editions. One relative

of Renner’s said: “A day when he did

nothing, at least read nothing seri-

ous, was for him a day sadly lost.”

In 1924, amidst political upheaval,

the debate on roman versus gothic

reached the crisis point. Renner’s

own views on this issue were the

result of long periods of research.

He recognized the benefits of gothic’s

truncated curves in saving space

in the setting of lengthy compound

words; but against this, he pointed

out that gothic script had its origins

in courtly printing – designed for

luxury and not for everyday use.

In conclusion, Renner regarded

gothic as a decadence, and its

capitals as “monstrosities.”

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renn

er

Renn

er sa

w ro

man

as f

orm

ing

the

trunk

of t

he fa

mily

tree

of ty

pe, w

ith ro

man

cap

itals

as th

e ba

sis fo

r all

futu

re d

evel

opm

ents

in W

este

rn le

tterfo

rms.

And

on

the

grou

nds t

hat m

inus

cule

s infl

uenc

ed b

y ro

man

form

s

coul

d be

trac

ed b

ack

to C

harle

mag

ne, w

hose

em

pire

inclu

ded

the

first

Ger

man

Rei

ch, R

enne

r con

clude

d th

at

rom

an w

as m

ore

Ger

man

than

got

hic.

Ren

ner c

reat

ed

Futu

ra b

oth

as a

new

form

of G

rote

sk a

nd a

s a m

eans

of g

ettin

g sh

ed so

me

of G

erm

any’s

old

-fash

ione

d

“nat

iona

l dre

ss.”

In p

artic

ular

, Ren

ner s

ough

t a b

al-

ance

bet

wee

n ca

pita

ls an

d lo

wer

cas

e m

ore

effe

ctive

than

that

of H

erbe

rt Ba

yer’s

“uni

versa

l alp

habe

t” –

a

com

pass

-and

-pen

type

face

in w

hich

the

capi

tals

led

the

low

erca

se ra

ther

than

bei

ng in

har

mon

y w

ith it

.

light ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRS TUVWXYZ@#&1234567890

renn

er

Renn

er sa

w ro

man

as f

orm

ing

the

trunk

of t

he fa

mily

tree

of ty

pe, w

ith ro

man

cap

itals

as th

e ba

sis fo

r all

futu

re d

evel

opm

ents

in W

este

rn le

tterfo

rms.

And

on

the

grou

nds t

hat m

inus

cule

s infl

uenc

ed b

y ro

man

form

s

coul

d be

trac

ed b

ack

to C

harle

mag

ne, w

hose

em

pire

inclu

ded

the

first

Ger

man

Rei

ch, R

enne

r con

clude

d th

at

rom

an w

as m

ore

Ger

man

than

got

hic.

Ren

ner c

reat

ed

Futu

ra b

oth

as a

new

form

of G

rote

sk a

nd a

s a m

eans

of g

ettin

g sh

ed so

me

of G

erm

any’s

old

-fash

ione

d

“nat

iona

l dre

ss.”

In p

artic

ular

, Ren

ner s

ough

t a b

al-

ance

bet

wee

n ca

pita

ls an

d lo

wer

cas

e m

ore

effe

ctive

than

that

of H

erbe

rt Ba

yer’s

“uni

versa

l alp

habe

t” –

a

com

pass

-and

-pen

type

face

in w

hich

the

capi

tals

led

the

low

erca

se ra

ther

than

bei

ng in

har

mon

y w

ith it

.

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The Futura font is a popular font

that enjoyed its heyday during the

20th century. This simple geometric

sans serif design was developed in

the late 1920s by Paul Renner and

is believed to have launched the

beginning of the 20th century’s sans

serif love affair. The unconventional

letter shapes, strict geometric outlines

and a lack of ornamentation made a

big impact on the graphic designers

of the day. At first, the radical new

look was controversial and consid-

ered grotesque. The newness made

an impression and the font and its

sans serif cousins took hold.This bold

design uses perfect circles, squares

and triangles and low-contrast, even

strokes and blends them into a work

of art. In fact, this beautiful typeface

is the only typeface that is an official

work of art, copyright and all.

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extr

a bo

ldco

nden

sed

While the introduction of Futura

created great controversy, it eventu-

ally gained widespread popularity in

the 1950s and 1960s. Volkswagen

adopted this font and still uses it

today. In addition, it is said to be

the favorite font of Stanley Kubrick

making its mark on many of his

movies and promotional campaigns.

You’ll see this font in use in headlines

as well as bodies of text in many

applications including print and

digital publications. A sans serif

font like this, will give your piecee a

clean, bold look. It’s an easy-to-read

typeface with a balanced look to it.

While trends come and go, the Futura

font has worked its way into the

hearts of designers over the course

of the past eighty years. From its

radical and impressive introduction

to widespread adoption, this lovely

typeface has passed the test of time.

Today, it is considered a must-have in

any graphic designer’s toolbox.

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futura

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cond

ense

d

ffutura today

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In April 1919 the Bauhaus opened

its doors in Weimar, Germany under

the direction of the architect Walter

Gropius. The Bauhaus was the suc-

cessor institute to to the Grand Ducal

Saxon Art Academy and the Grand

Ducal school of Arts and Crafts, the

latter having been shut down at the

outbreak of the World War.

The Bauhaus combined elements of

both fine arts and design education.

The curriculum commenced with a

preliminary course that immersed the

students, who came from a diverse

range of social and educational

backgrounds, in the study of

materials, color theory, and formal

relationships in preparation for

more specialized studies. Following

their immersion in Bauhaus theory,

students entered specialized work-

shops, which included metalworking,

cabinetmaking, weaving, pottery,

typography, and wall painting.

Although Gropius’ initial aim was a

unification of the arts through craft,

aspects of this approach proved

financially impractical. While

maintaining the emphasis on craft,

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bold

he repositioned the goals of the

Bauhaus in 1923, stressing the

importance of designing for mass

production. It was at this time that

the school adopted the slogan “Art

into Industry.” In 1925, the Bauhaus

moved from Weimar to Dessau,

where Gropius designed a new

building to house the school.

The typography workshop, while not

initially a priority of the Bauhaus,

became increasingly important under

figures like Moholy-Nagy and the

graphic designer Herbert Bayer.

Typography was conceived as both

an empirical means of communication

and an artistic expression, with visual

clarity stressed above all. Concur-

rently, typography became increas-

ingly connected to corporate identity

and advertising. Promotional materi-

als prepared for the Bauhaus at the

workshop, with their use of sans serif

typefaces and the incorporation

of photography as a key graphic

element, served as visual symbols of

the avant-garde institution.

bauhaus

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Copy text set in 8pt over 13.5 leading futura book.

Copy text taken from:

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/bauh/hd_bauh.htm

http://www.urbanfonts.com/blog/futura-font/

http://www.itcfonts.co

m/Ulc/2533/BookRevRenner.htm

The Bauhaus Idea and Bauhaus Politics By: Eva Forgacs 1991

Paul Renner: art of typography By: Christopher Burke 1998

Inspiration for brochure based on the character “f”.

Inspiration for graphics based on composition

by: Paul Renneron “futura” 1927.