Typography History on AI

Carl Shank • February 23, 2023

Typography and Artificial Intelligence

A new way to retrieve information about most any topic, including typography, is offered through AI – artificial intelligence. More precisely, through ChatGPT, which allows the user to ask a question to an AI generated interface, a user can freely investigate topics that once took hours of painstaking research. Two models I have used, one which is free to the user (openai.com) and another service (ai-pro, which costs about $20 per month but is much more sophisticated) allow the user to get decent and mostly accurate information about most any topic. I typed into the chat box "history of typography" and "modern typography" and received the following AI generated answers:


"Typography is an artform that has evolved since the invention of the printing press in the 15th century. Its evolution has been driven by the technological advancements in typesetting and printing. During the 15th and 16th centuries, type design was largely influenced by the Gothic style. This style featured the use of slab serifs, intricate patterns, and large decorative flourishes. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, new typefaces emerged based on the Romanesque style, a style of lettering developed by Italian priests in the Vatican as a response to the Gothic style. This style is more simplified and is often used in book typesetting today. The late 19th century saw the emergence of the Art Deco style, which featured strong contrast and geometric typefaces. This style was the source of most of the typefaces used throughout the twentieth century. The mid-twentieth century was an important period in typography, as it was during this time that the sans-serif style began to increase its prevalence. Sans-serif fonts such as Helvetica, Futura, and Arial became popular, largely replacing the Art Deco typefaces of earlier decades. Today, typography has become a specialized artform. It is used in almost every aspect of visual arts and design and continues to evolve as new technologies emerge. Computers and digital printing have allowed typographers to create intricate and complex typefaces and forms unlike anything seen before. Computers have also changed the way that typefaces are delivered, allowing designers to manipulate them in a variety of ways to create visual effects and combinations."


"The history of typography is a story of technological progress and aesthetic trends. It begins in the 15th century with the invention of the printing press and the spread of movable type. In this period, traditional calligraphic letterforms were adapted for print, leading to a variety of typefaces with elaborate serifs, ornaments and flourishes. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the typewriter and the photograph led to increased speed in typesetting, and the industrial revolution brought with it a fascination for the mechanized application of type. Late 19th and 20th century saw revolutions in type design with the appearance of sans-serif typefaces and the development of new technologies such as linotype and phototypesetting. These new technologies gave typographers more control over the design of typefaces and increased the speed of typesetting and printing. New typefaces designed in the last decades of the 20th century, such as Helvetica, Univers and Frutiger, are still widely used today. The early 21st century saw an explosion of digital technology, with the birth of desktop publishing, the World Wide Web, and digital font applications. This digital revolution made typefaces more widely available, and ushered in a new era of typographic exploration. Fonts that were once only available to professional designers and printers are now at the fingertips of everyone with a computer and an internet connection. As the digital age continues to evolve, typography will surely continue its fascinating journey."


When I asked the AI Chat about "modern typography," I got the following response: "Modern typography is the practice of arranging and designing type in a way that is aesthetically pleasing and enhances the readability and legibility of written language. It emerged in the late 19th and early 20th century as a response to the changing technological and cultural landscape of the time, particularly the rise of industrialization, mass media, and global communication.


Some of the most important writers and inventors of modern typography include:


Jan Tschichold: A German typographer and designer who played a significant role in the development of modern typography. He was a proponent of asymmetrical typography and advocated for the use of sans-serif fonts in printed materials.


Eric Gill: A British sculptor, typeface designer, and printmaker who is best known for his typeface designs, including Gill Sans and Perpetua. He was a leading figure in the Arts and Crafts movement and his work had a significant influence on modern typography.


Paul Renner: A German typographer and typeface designer who is best known for creating the iconic Futura typeface. Futura became one of the most popular and widely used typefaces of the 20th century and had a significant impact on modern typography.


Adrian Frutiger: A Swiss typeface designer who created some of the most widely used typefaces of the 20th century, including Univers, Frutiger, and Avenir. His work was characterized by a focus on clarity, legibility, and simplicity.


Herb Lubalin: An American graphic designer and typographer who is best known for his work on magazines such as Avant Garde and Eros. He was a pioneer of expressive typography and used type as a visual element in his designs.


These and other writers and inventors of modern typography have had a profound influence on the field of graphic design and continue to inspire new generations of designers today."


A couple of things to note. First, these answers are quite general, but mostly accurate for generalized information. They fail to elucidate what standard typographical texts say about typography. They give summary statements. You can drill down in the Chat and ask more specific questions and the AI will usually cooperate, but this is different than reading a typographical history book on the subject. However, the AI Chat does give enough information, as a starting point, to the study of typography.


Try it out for yourself!




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Pen-Lettering History

By Carl Shank • July 17, 2025
Pen-drawn lettering lies at the heart of Western typographic tradition. From Roman capitals to digital script fonts, its influence persists in the balance, rhythm, and grace of letterforms—whether carved in stone, printed in books, or drawn by hand on a modern tablet. The history of pen-drawn lettering in typography is deeply intertwined with the broader evolution of writing, calligraphy, and type design. It represents a key bridge between handwritten traditions and mechanical or digital type. Key characteristics of Pen-Drawn Lettering include stroke contrast, from broad-nib or pointed-pen techniques, fluid cures and terminals, which are naturally shaped by hand movement, and the human touch of imperfections, variation and expression. Although allied with Calligraphy, pen-lettering has distinct differences. Calligraphy illustrates the art of writing with specific strokes, while pen-lettering focuses on the art of drawing letters. Calligraphy shows writing in one continuous flow while in pen-lettering letters are stylized individually. Calligraphy relies on pressure for thick/thin strokes while pen-lettering is drawn and shaded manually. It is harder to fix mistakes in calligraphy. Thus, the word "typography" in calligraphy is written in one flowing motion, using a brush pen, adjusting pressure to get thick and thin lines. In pen-lettering the word "typography" is done by drawing each letter as a mini-illustration, perhaps outlining it and adding embellishments. However, both calligraphy and pen-lettering share similar histories and are at least partners in typography. The plates below give an overall history of pen-lettering. Enjoy!

Faust Lettering

By Carl Shank • July 11, 2025
Charles Ayers Faust (b. 1860) was an American calligrapher and typographic designer known primarily for his 1912 compendium Faust’s 75 New Alphabets , a richly illustrated manual of lettering techniques. Published in Chicago by the C. W. Braithewait Company, this 72‑page volume is now in the public domain. CARE Typography, in its mission to digitally restore older typography, has restored some of Faust's designs for the modern type world. 75 unique alphabets for artistic lettering, including brush, air-brush, air-pencil, relief, stencil, marking, shading, and both ornate (Payzant, Soennecken) and practical “common pen” styles. They are Highly visual, serving as both an instructional guide and inspirational specimen book for sign-writers, designers, artists, and printers of the early 20th century.  Samples are below, available from CARE Typography .
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