Futura Case Study

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3.2.3 Anatomy of Futura

Overview
Futura, a geometric21 sans-serif typeface, is embraced as an expression of Modernism and industrial culture of the 1920s. Designed by the Germany book designer Paul Renner, the typeface owing much to its geometric construction and architectural characteristics to enhance its functionality and commercial success. Moreover, the Super Normal typeface is also regarded as one of the best representative typefaces that reflects the spirit of the Bauhaus and its dictum that ‘form follows function’.

Analysis

• Legibility

Counters: moderate counters

x-height: moderate ratio (67%)

Width and weight: the design of Futura, based on the elemental forms, is a wide typeface with considerable variations (X=70%) in width, …show more content…

Eliminating nonessential elements, the minimized letterforms weaken the identification to recognize some of the letters: the lowercase ‘a’ and ‘g’ with single-counter are less legible than the two-counter letters; the letter ‘b’, ‘d’, ‘p’ and ‘q’ are considered to be just mirrored or rotated …show more content…

Not that Futura is unreadable in body copy - it can definitively be read in small sizes or even put in rich-text documents - however, its mathematical structure produces it advisable to set text sizes with a fairly loose letter-spacing. Otherwise, the letters are likely to merge. Used with care, the typeface is able to bring precision and clarity to visual communication on a daily basis no matter for the print or digital purposes.

• Aesthetics

Derived entirely from the geometric forms, uniform thicknesses and distinctively tall lowercase letters, Futura promotes an appearance of efficiency and forwardness: clean, versatile, standardized legible, stylish without any overt ‘style’.

Terminal: built on the simplicity and mechanistic qualities, each element of Futura is minimized for modular design. A primary attribute of the lowercase set is the one-stroke ‘o’, which functions as a basis for a variety of letters, such as ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘e’, ‘g’, ‘p’ and ‘q’. Moreover, the idea of simplicity is also evident in the absence of a tail in lowercase ‘j’, ‘t’, ‘u’ as well as the pointed apices on the ‘v’ and

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