Robert Steinmüller's new book Mono is the new Black is a cultural-history, compilation, handbook and source of inspiration for anyone interested in monospace typefaces.
Monospaced fonts originate from the typewriter and are oddly characterised by all letters, digits, and characters having the same width. Mono is the new Black discusses the function and aesthetics of this unique kind of typeface and deals with its cult status in the emerging design scene. The aim of the handbook is to inform and inspire typographers, typeface developers and designers as well as the general reader interested in this culture in general. The book is packed with facts, analyses, expert opinion, practical examples and a comprehensive font collection.
Robert Steinmüller provides a cultural-historical outline to indicate the historical aspects of this typeface and to reveal how closely intertwined type, technical progres and social development are. He presents a selection of examples of the work of globally active designers and agencies with a focus on the many possible applications, and provides a script compendium to give a clear overview of 175 monospaced fonts. It shows the changes that these distinctive monospaced fonts have undergone, from machine type to entirely digitally developed coding fonts.
Niggli, 532pp, 12.5cm x 18.3cm, Paperback with flaps, 2023.