205 Corp.
24, rue Commandant-Faurax
69006 Lyon
France
T. 33 (0)4 37 47 85 69
M. contact@205.tf
Newsletter
205 Corp.
24, rue Commandant-Faurax
69006 Lyon
France
T. 33 (0)4 37 47 85 69
M. contact@205.tf
Newsletter
Exposure borrows the eponymous principle from photography, using it to question the possibilities offered by variable fonts in a completely original way. While studying at the Atelier national de recherche typographique (Nancy, France), Federico Parra Barrios took a very unique approach to the technique, developing a singular typeface between 2019 and 2022.
Available in Roman and Italic, Exposure is a remarkable feat — both technically and in terms of drawing — that shows how other ways of exploiting variable font technology are possible.
While variable fonts — which appeared in 2016 — are considered to be a major development in typography, the use of axes of variation to modify weight, set-width, and optical size are all transformations inherited from previous techniques. Federico Parra Barrios breaks away from this conventional approach to propose a new way of thinking.
Exposure’s axis of variation ranges from –100 to +100, and gives a feeling of adjusting the intensity of the light to which the typeface is exposed, thus affecting its outline. Some might see this as a nod to another, now defunct, technique: phototypesetting.
At zero, the typeface is sharp and crisp. As the index decreases, the font becomes increasingly underexposed. The typeface seems to deform and becomes overwhelmingly black. The counterforms are filled almost to the point of illegibility.
Conversely, as the index increases, so does the light intensity. The original line is somehow overexposed until parts of it vanish as if burned by the light.
Federico Parra Barrios has carefully sculpted many intermediate designs in-between these extremes. In its static version, Exposure is also available in 21 different intensities of light. With the variable version, the user is free to select the index according to their needs and, of course, dynamically exploit the technology to create animations.
Hour, designed by Federico Parra Barrios, is an original typeface that presents both conceptual and technical challenges. It proposes a contemporary interpretation of engraved letters, exploring how we perceive their forms based on the angle of incidence of the sun and the ambient light.
This typeface breaks with a two-dimensional representation of the alphabet. One of the main challenges of Hour was how to portray the texture and depth of lapidary engraving, along with its shadows, under the constraints of Bézier curves. The illusion is created through an interplay of rasters with varying values. Though actually only drawn in black, each letter appears to contain tones of gray.
Hour is a particularly accomplished variable font, despite having only two axes. The first axis, “hour,” determines the angle at which light strikes the surfaces of the letters, similar to a sundial. This axis evolves logically from 0 to 12, with the light appearing to revolve around the letters, generating an infinite number of variations.
The second axis, “okta,” borrows the measurement of cloud cover from meteorology. By varying it, the designer gives the sensation of modifying the intensity of the incident light, as if adjusting the nebulousness and opacity of clouds in the sky. Like the original unit of measurement, this axis extends from 0 to 800: from cloudy to sunny, progressing through clear.
Thanks to its particularly advanced technical development, Hour is a typeface intended for motion design, but can also display its originality when used to compose the title of a book or a magazine.
To try Hour is to adopt it!