Essential Typography Resources

Everyday books, websites, and organizations for every library.

A collection of resources for everyone from the art director to the student, meaning these resources range from basic to advanced while all being continuously useful beyond initially discovering them.

I creating this resource to help me centralize my collection of resources, so I have it bookmarked in my browser for quick referencing.

Books

1. “Thinking with type: A Critical Guide
   for Designers, Writers, Editors, & Students”
   by Ellen Lupton
   This book covers everything from the anatomy of type to a guide on how to combine different typefaces into a design.
2. “Grid Systems in Graphic Design”
   by Josef Müller-Brockmann
   Grid systems are essential to composing and organizing the space of any design. This book provides high-level concepts and visuals for how they can be applied.
3. “The Elements of Typographic Style”
   by Robert Bringhurst
   Consider this the encyclopedia of typography. The historical connections to typography will help you gain a deeper understanding of typography.
4. “Type. A Visual History of Typefaces & Graphic Styles”
   by Jan Tholenaar
   A comprehensive book presenting a broad range of visual examples of printed typography from 1628 to 1938.
5. “Web Typography: A handbook for designing beautiful
   and effective typography in responsive websites”
   by Richard Rutter
   This book will provide you with a firm understanding of how digital typography can be optimized in designs.
6. “The 3D Type Book”
   by Agathe Jacquillat & Tomi Vollauschek
   An excellent collection of examples of how typography can extend from the printed page and digital realm to a three-dimensional space.
7. “Type Rules: The Designer’s Guide to Professional Typography”
   by Ilene Strizver
   Understanding the formal rules of typography prevents designers reach a higher level of craftsmanship and prevent regrettable mistakes.
8. “Advanced Typography: From Knowledge to Mastery”
   by Richard Hunt
   Once a firm understanding of typography is developed, this book will take that understanding to a much higher level.
9. “Stop Stealing Sheep & Find Out How Type Works”
   by Erik Spiekermann
   An entertaining book about the intricacies of typography that helps designers learn to think beyond the rules of typography to develop styles.
10. “Theory of Type Design”
    by Gerard Unger
    Helps designers reach beyond practice and history to a more theoretical understanding in a way that is is accessible and applicable.

Websites

1. Google Fonts
   https://fonts.google.com/
   Google’s interactive web library of more than a thousand free and open source font families.
2. Adobe Type
   https://fonts.adobe.com/
   Adobe’s interactive web library of high-quality font families from leading type foundries and type designers.
3. MyFonts
   https://www.myfonts.com
   An excellent site to download high-quality web and desktop fonts.
4. Fonts In Use
   https://fontsinuse.com/
   An archive of exemplary typography with the typeface names provided in each design.
5. TypeDrawers
   https://typedrawers.com
   A discussion forum for professionals and enthusiasts in the fields of typeface design, lettering, and typography.
6. WhatFont
   https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/whatfont/jabopobgcpjmedljpbcaablpmlmfcogm
   Excellent Google Chrome plugin for identifying the family, style, weight, size, line height, and color of a typeface being used on a website.
7. Typewolf
   https://www.typewolf.com/
   An excellent resource for comparing typefaces.
8. Fontshop Glossary
   https://www.fontshop.com/glossary/
   A comprehensive library of terms related to typography.
9. Typedia
   http://typedia.com/
   The Wikipedia of typography.
10. Professional Web Typography
    https://prowebtype.com/
    A great e-book for understanding and using typography on the web.

Organizations

1. Type Directors Club
   https://www.tdc.org/
   New York, NY, United States
2. Society for Typographic Arts (STA)
   https://sta-chicago.org/
   Chicago, IL, United States
3. American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA)
   https://www.aiga.org/
   New York, NY, United States
4. The One Club for Creativity
   https://www.oneclub.org/
   New York, NY, United States
5. International Society of Typographic Designers (ISTD)
   https://www.istd.org.uk
   London, UK