THE STYLES
The difference between Pro and Std styles is the quantity of glyphs. For that reason, Pro styles include all the ornamental alternates and ligatures while Std styles are a lowered version of Pro ones.
Big and Little designs were believed for much better printing results. While Big is advised to be printed in huge sizes, Small might be printed in small sizes and will still reveal its hairlines well.
INTRODUCTION
I have always questioned if the circle could ever be considered as an imperfect shape. Thousands of years have passed and we still think about circles as synonyms of boundless charm. Some believe that there is something intrinsically "magnificent" that could be found in them. Sensuality is sometimes related to perfectly formed strong curves, exuberant forms and a big contrasts. Erotica is a typeface developed with this in mind.
THE PROCESS
This story begins one great day of March in 2012. I was trying to find something brand-new. Something which would reveal the deep love I feel relating to calligraphy in a brand-new way.
At that time, I was practicing a lot of roundhand, screening and feeling various type of nibs; hearing the sometimes sharp, often soft, sound of them sliding on the paper.
This kind of calligraphy has some really rigorous guidelines: An even pattern of repetition is required, so you have to be definitely familiar with the pressure of the flexible pen; and of the range in between characters. Likewise, discovering copperplate can be truly useful to understand about proportion in letters and how a minimum modification of it can drastically impact the appearance of the word and text.
Many times I would forget type-design and I would let myself go( 1 ): Nothing like making the pen dance when adding some distinctions above and below the composed word.
Once something is mastered, you are able to break some rules. A minimum of, that's my approach. (2 )
After some research, I found that the world needed an actually attractive yet official copperplate. (3 )
I began Erotica with the idea of taking some guidelines of this design to the extreme.
Some characters were drawn with a pencil first since what I had in mind was difficult to be made with a pen. (4 )
Finding an elegant method to combine really thick thicks with really thin hairlines with satisfactory results required months of tough work: The embryo of Erotica was a lot more bolder than now and had a much shorter x-height. Altering proportions of Erotica was crucial for its final look. The taller it ended up being the sexier it looked. Like women again?
The outcome is a font filled with lots of alternates which can make the user believe he/she is the real designer of the word/phrase due to the big quantity of possibilities when picking glyphs.
To make Erotica work well in little sizes too, I developed Erotica Small which can be printed in small sizes without any problems.
For a more sophisticated function, I designed Erotica Inline, with precisely the exact same functions you can discover in the other styles.
After ending up these designs, I needed a partner for Erotica. Inspired again in some old calligraphic books I found that Bickham used to accompany his terrific scripts with some ornated roman caps. Erotica Capitals follows the essentials of those capitals and can be used with or without its alternates to accompany Erotica.
In 2013, Erotica got a Certificate of Excellence in Type Design in the 59th TDC Type Directors Club Typeface Design Competition.
Meet Erotica, charm and beauty guaranteed.
Notes
( 1) It is supossed that I'm a typographer rather than a calligrapher, but the truth is that I remain in the middle. Being a graphic designer makes me a little persistent in some cases. However, I discovered that the more you do not think about type rules, the more graceful and lively pieces of calligraphy can be done.
( 2) "Know the types well prior to you try to make them" used to say E. A. Lupfer, a master of this sort of script a century back. And I would include "And once you know them, it's time to fly ..."
( 3) Some script fonts by my compatriots Sabrina Lopez, Ramiro Espinoza and Alejandro Paul should have a mention here since of their undeniable appeal. The fact that lots of great copperplate typefaces come from Argentina makes me feel truly proud. Take an appearance at: Parfumerie, Medusa, Burgues, Poem and Bellisima.
( 4) Some calligraphers, graphic and type designer explored in this field in the mid-to-late 20th century and made an actually lively style out of it: Letters show a lot of character and in some cases they appear drawn instead of composed. I wish to express my genuine adoration to the wonderful Herb Lubalin, and his good friends Tony DiSpigna, Tom Carnase, and of course my fellow compatriot Ricardo Rousselot. All of them, remarkable.
Font Family:
· Erotica Big Pro
· Erotica Big Std
· Erotica Inline Pro
· Erotica Inline Std
· Erotica Small Pro
· Erotica Small Std
· Erotica Capitals Big
· Erotica Capitals Small
· Erotica Fleurons
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