Ludwig Type

“It always begins with an idea,” Ludwig Übele said in his Creative Characters interview. Ludwig has made a name for himself designing text families that are known for being quietly unorthodox: sophisticated in detail yet incredibly readable even in small sizes. For this designer, typography means being able to see both the forest and the trees; serving the content while still providing it with a unique and distinct voice. “I’ve always felt that type offers more substance because it is such an integral part of our culture, with a history that goes back thousands of years,” he said. “And although letters are everywhere and everyone is constantly using them, only very few people are consciously concerned with the forms of the letters themselves.” “I am simply trying to design new, lively and readable letters.” And he has done just that with a library that successfully combines serious text families such as Marat and Augustin with playful fonts like Daisy, a recipient of the TDC2 award. Of his affinity for designing text fonts he says, “I often find so-called text faces more interesting because they are designed for immersive reading and need to work well in small sizes. I’m interested in how to make a font as a whole – not so much the individual letters – and how to create a specific text image that is both interesting and enjoyable to read.” He doesn’t just make retail fonts, but also does commissioned work, mostly with lettering, logos and custom-made fonts. “I just hope to create typefaces that have a certain relevance to type design in general,” he says of his design philosophy, “types that inspire other type designers.”