Impact Type

The recently published book Impact Type written by Sophie Wietlisbach, explores the history behind the... Der Beitrag Impact Type erschien zuerst auf slanted.

Mär 18, 2025 - 11:13

The recently published book Impact Type written by Sophie Wietlisbach, explores the history behind the Swiss typewriter typefaces and the historical context in which they were produced.

Between the 1940s and the 1990s, three companies from Northwest Switzerland produced typefaces for typewriters: Caractères SA, Setag, and Novatype. For over fifty years, they supplied major office machine manufacturers in Europe and around the world, such as IBM, Remington, Olivetti, Paillard-Hermès, and Triumph-Adler. These three companies, holding a leading position in the global market, played a significant role in the design, development, and production of type components and fonts for typewriters and all types of impact printers. These visually distinctive typefaces continue to play an important role in today’s typographic scene.

The richly illustrated publication, featuring detailed portraits of Caractères SA, Setag, and Novatype, explores the history behind these typefaces and the historical context in which they were produced. When the three Swiss companies closed in the 1990s, most of their archives were destroyed. This book brings together documents and information gathered through years of research in numerous locations, containing unpublished visuals and shedding light on a lesser-known part of industrial and typographic history on both local and international levels.

Impact Type—Manufacturing Type for Typewriters in Switzerland, 1941–1997

Publisher: Triest Verlag
Editor: Sophie Wietlisbach, with contributions by Roland Früh & Davide Fornari
Design: Sophie Wietlisbach
Release: February 2025
Format: 24 × 16,3 cm
Volume: 224 pages
Language: English
Workmanship: Softcover binding