Women in Typography
Contributions of 4 Women to Our Understanding and Use of Type
Most classic typefaces bearing the names of their designers share one overwhelming characteristic -- they are named for men. While men lay claim to the faces of type, there are many notable, if sometimes overlooked, women of typography. Four of these women, covering everything from pioneering research and essays to bringing the world of type to the masses are Beatrice Ward, Carol Twombly, Kathleen Tinkel, and Robin Williams.
Beatrice Ward
During the 1920's Ward did research into typefaces and printing. She made her mark first in 1926 (writing under a penname) by tracing typefaces attributed to Claude Garamond back to Jean Jannon of Sedan. Later as a writer and typographer she worked alongside such significant contributors to typography as Stanley Morison and Eric Gill.
Content is more important than the container, and fine typography is transparent, allowing the message to show through. In other words, printing should be invisible. That was the thrust of Ward's most famous essay "The Crystal Goblet" which opens with an elaborate metaphor comparing good typography to drinking wine from a clear glass.
Carol Twombly
Intending to be a sculptor, Twombly switched to graphic design studies and soon became immersed in the world of type design. Working for Adobe since 1988 (recently retired), some of her best known faces include Trajan, Charlemagne, and Lithos. Among her many achievements and honors, Twombly was the first woman to receive the prestigious Charles Peignot award from the Association Typographique Internationale (ATypI) for outstanding contributions to type design.
In addition to adaptations of classic faces such as Trajan, she has many original designs to her credit including Viva, Nueva, Myriad (with Robert Slimbach), and Chapparal.
Kathleen Tinkel
I first encountered the typographic musings of Kathleen Tinkel many years ago on the CompuServe forums. I admit that much of what she had to say went right over my head — but by continuing to read and study it began to sink in. At the time I had no idea that she was a well-known and respected authority on type. She has written for Step by Step Electronic Design, Adobe Magazine, U&lc, MacWorld, and MacWeek, to name a few.
Tinkel writes about software, people, fonts, and the aesthetics of using type. She's the author of numerous tip lists and type basics articles including 10 Typographical Blunders, and 10 Menacing Font Foibles.
Robin Williams
A best-selling book author and profilic article writer, Robin Williams may be the most familiar woman of typography among non-designers. She has made the concepts of design and typography understandable and accessible to even the most non-artistic among us. Her Non-Designer's series for Peachpit Press includes The Non-Designer's Type Book.
How to Boss Your Fonts Around, The Mac is Not a Typewriter, and The PC is Not a Typewriter are just a few of her extremely popular books on type and design.
In addition to her books, Robin can be read on the Web. Her type columns for Eyewire Magazine expand on the use of type covering many nitty-gritty topics in easy-to-understand language. You can read excerpts of some of her books on the Peachpit Press site.
More
If you enjoyed this look at some of the women of typography, you may also enjoy these About features on two women inventors who, in their own way contributed to our world of computer design:
- Bette Nesmith Graham - Besides being the mother of a Monkee she invented that wonderful stuff called Liquid Paper which I personally made great use of when 'publishing' my first (typewritten) newsletter
- Grace Hopper - Computer pioneer and inventor whose work may have lead directly or indirectly to the desktop publishing programs that make our design lives easier
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