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What’s New in the Online Archive, Feb. 2019

We’ve been regularly updating the Online Archive beta since we opened it to members in November. Here are the newest collections and features.

Emigre magazine online
A few of the 20 issues of Emigre recently added to the Online Archive.

Emigre magazine, Nos. 12–32

When Zuzana Licko and Rudy VanderLans generously donated their archive back in 2015, it came with a wonderful challenge: digitize the entire run of Emigre magazine and make it available for everyone to read online. Meeting this mandate required specifications for image size and quality that helped set the standards for the rest of the Online Archive. Our files have enough resolution and clarity to let you read the text of every article when you zoom into the tabloid-sized pages.

Emigre is a groundbreaking publication. Its essays and interviews provide unparalleled insight into the heady days of the transition between analog and digital design. We’re honored to make this vital record available to the public. The latest batch of additions cover 1989–1994 with words and work by names like Jonathan Barnbrook, Erik van Blokland, Irma Boom, David Carson, Pierre di Sciullo, John Downer, Ellen Lupton, Ed Fella, April Greiman, Julie Holcomb, Jeffrey Keedy, Warren Lehrer, Just van Rossum, Rick Valicenti, Wolfgang Weingart, and Lorraine Wild.

Members: Launch the Online Archive and search “emigre”.

German movie programs
A wide variety of typically German lettering styles are showcased for the movie titles in this collection of promotional booklets.

German Movie Programs, 1937–62

Lettering can be very specific to its country or region. The styles typical of mid-20th-century Germany are delightfully displayed in these small movie magazines. Published by various outfits, including Progress Film Programm, Illustrierter Film-Kurier, and Illustrierte Film-Bühne, each booklet promotes a single film. As expected, the actors are prominently featured on the covers, but the hand-lettered titles also play a starring role — and many of these script, blackletter, and display styles are unique to their time and place. The programs also showcase elaborate photomontages of scenes from each film in the center spreads. Thirty-one of the nearly 100 such programs in the Archive’s collection are available in the Online Archive.

Members: Launch the Online Archive and use the filter menu to select Countries: Germany and Formats: Program.

Caslon specimen, 1844
Known primarily for its namesake roman type, the Caslon foundry also cast many other type styles, many of which were first introduced in the early 1800s.

Caslon Specimen, 1844

This catalog from the Henry Caslon foundry is a significant record of 19th-century typeface design. It includes many classifications that were new to printers at that time, including extra bold Modern (“fat face”), sans serif, rounded sans serif, slab serif (“Antique”), reverse contrast (“Italian”), and a variety of ornamented styles. The Online Archive includes 44 images of the book, including the cover, front matter, 40 pages of type specimens, and even the broken spine revealing handwritten scrap paper used as part of the binding process. The catalog is among hundreds of bound foundry specimens in the Tholenaar Collection, and the first to be included in the Online Archive. More will follow!

Members: Launch the Online Archive and search “caslon”.

New Features

Online Archive zoom
Click to zoom into any image. Click again to zoom back out.
  • Zoom: Now you can simply click or tap to zoom to the maximum image size. (The pinch gesture still works, too.)
  • Keyboard navigation: As an alternative to clicking each thumbnail to navigate items with multiple images, you can now use your keyboard’s arrow keys to advance to the next image. This is particularly useful when reading multi-page publications like Emigre.
  • Type to filter: One of the most powerful features of the Online Archive is the ability to quickly filter results to browse the collection. Now it’s easier to get right to the term you’re seeking by selecting a category (such as “Formats”) and typing in the search field. Relevant filters will immediately appear below.

Along with these updates, we’re also regularly fixing bugs and improving the experience. This is due in great part to input from members, so thank you! Please keep exploring the site and click the ? button on any page to ask questions or send us feedback.

Not yet a member? Join now and get immediate access to the Online Archive beta. Your support helps us digitize more items and improve the site.