Right Type

Designer Hugh Morse sings the praises of Lettera-Txt, a warm but utilitarian typeface inspired by Josef Müller-Brockmann’s designs for Olivetti typewriters. In 2012, a particular typeface caught my eye. It was a sans serif, with a unique tone I had not seen before – a curious blend of utility and warmth. The typeface was Lettera-Txt by Zürich-based designer Kobi Benezri, and to my surprise, was based on designs by Josef Müller-Brockmann.

Müller-Brockmann’s monspaced Candia was produced for Olivetti in the 1970s (named after the area where Olivetti’s factory was based). His designs were modified slightly by Olivetti type engineers for the production of their ‘golf ball’, and later, ‘daisy wheel’ typewriter elements. For unclear reasons, it proved unpopular and so its existence was short-lived, only in production for a number of months before being retired and forgotten until Benezri’s interpretation, Lettera, in 2006. The name Lettera refers to Mario Bellini’s iconic portable typewriter, the Lettera 22, produced by Olivetti.

Lettera-Txt is a proportional version of Lettera. It manages to distil the character of monospace forms and translates it into a typeface, suitable for text or display – an ambitious task carried out beautifully. Its uppercase forms resemble the archetypal and anonymous letterforms on typewriter keys which have always intrigued me, while it’s spacing and lowercase characters provide softness and versatility. Distinguished by a relatively high cross bar and balanced by a tight spur radius, the ‘a’ is my favourite letterform, encapsulating the ambitions of the project perfectly.

morsestudio.com


Hugh Morse

…is a London-based designer who founded Morse Studio in 2008. The studio specialises in branding, art direction, and graphic design for print, web and environments Recent projects include developing an identity and strategy for cookery presenter Lorraine Pascale, art direction for Falcon enamelware (including a shoot for foodie bible The Gourmand) and exhibition design for the British Library.
Kobi Benezri

This Israeli designer joined America’s longest-running product design magazine, the New York-based I.D. (not to be confused with i–D) in 2003, and a year later became its art director. In 2008 he set up his own studio and now focuses on books, editorial, web design, type and identity work. He designed René Redzepi: A Work in Progress, the epic Phaidon title that documented a year at Copenhagen restaurant Noma by splitting recipes, Redzepi’s journals and images snapped by Noma staff into three separate tomes held together by a four-way rubber strap.