Francesco Griffo
Encyclopedia
Francesco Griffo also called Francesco da Bologna, was a fifteenth-century Venetian
punchcutter. He worked for Aldus Manutius
, designing that printer's more important typeface
s, including the first italic type
. His romans show a degree of abstraction from calligraphy not present in the work of the earlier master Nicolas Jenson
, while his italic and Greek types are notably cursive
. Just as Manutius had achieved a monopoly on italic printing and Greek publishing with the permission of the Venetian government, he had a falling-out with Griffo. In 1516, after he returned to Bologna, Griffo was charged with the murder of his son-in-law, who had been beaten to death with an iron bar. This is his last appearance in the historical record.
Typefaces based on his work include Monotype Poliphilus roman, Bembo
Book roman, and Bembo Titling, Morris Fuller Benton
's Cloister Old Style italic, Jack Yan
's JY Aetna roman, Bitstream
Aldine 401 roman, and Franko Luin
's Griffo Classico roman and italic; more distant descendants include the romans of Claude Garamond
, Giovanni Mardersteig's Dante, and Robert Slimbach
's Minion
.
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
punchcutter. He worked for Aldus Manutius
Aldus Manutius
Aldus Pius Manutius , the Latinised name of Aldo Manuzio —sometimes called Aldus Manutius, the Elder to distinguish him from his grandson, Aldus Manutius, the Younger—was an Italian humanist who became a printer and publisher when he founded the Aldine Press at Venice.His publishing legacy includes...
, designing that printer's more important typeface
Typeface
In typography, a typeface is the artistic representation or interpretation of characters; it is the way the type looks. Each type is designed and there are thousands of different typefaces in existence, with new ones being developed constantly....
s, including the first italic type
Italic type
In typography, italic type is a cursive typeface based on a stylized form of calligraphic handwriting. Owing to the influence from calligraphy, such typefaces often slant slightly to the right. Different glyph shapes from roman type are also usually used—another influence from calligraphy...
. His romans show a degree of abstraction from calligraphy not present in the work of the earlier master Nicolas Jenson
Nicolas Jenson
Nicolas Jenson was a French engraver, pioneer printer and type designer who carried out most of his work in Venice. Jenson acted as Master of the French Royal Mint at Tours, and is accredited with being the creator of the first model roman type...
, while his italic and Greek types are notably cursive
Cursive
Cursive, also known as joined-up writing, joint writing, or running writing, is any style of handwriting in which the symbols of the language are written in a simplified and/or flowing manner, generally for the purpose of making writing easier or faster...
. Just as Manutius had achieved a monopoly on italic printing and Greek publishing with the permission of the Venetian government, he had a falling-out with Griffo. In 1516, after he returned to Bologna, Griffo was charged with the murder of his son-in-law, who had been beaten to death with an iron bar. This is his last appearance in the historical record.
Typefaces based on his work include Monotype Poliphilus roman, Bembo
Bembo
Bembo is the name given to a 20th-century revival of an old style serif or humanist typeface cut by Francesco Griffo around 1495.The typeface Bembo seen today is a revival designed under the direction of Stanley Morison for the Monotype Corporation in 1929.It is considered a good choice for...
Book roman, and Bembo Titling, Morris Fuller Benton
Morris Fuller Benton
Morris Fuller Benton was an influential American typeface designer who headed the design department of the American Type Founders , for which he was the chief type designer from 1900 to 1937...
's Cloister Old Style italic, Jack Yan
Jack Yan
Jack Yan is a publisher, designer and businessman, born 1972 in Kowloon, Hong Kong.Yan founded his own company in 1987 while a teenager and grew it, initially, into the region's leading font software firm, claiming to be the first New Zealander to design digital typefaces...
's JY Aetna roman, Bitstream
Bitstream Inc.
Bitstream Inc. is a type foundry that produces digital typefaces . Founded in 1981 by Matthew Carter and Mike Parker among others, it claims to be the oldest such company...
Aldine 401 roman, and Franko Luin
Franko Luin
Franko Luin was a Swedish type designer of Slovene origin. He studied graphic arts at Grafiska Institutet in Stockholm, where he graduated in 1967...
's Griffo Classico roman and italic; more distant descendants include the romans of Claude Garamond
Claude Garamond
Claude Garamond was a French publisher from Paris. He was one of the leading type designers of his time, and is credited with the introduction of the apostrophe, the accent and the cedilla to the French language. Several contemporary typefaces, including those currently known as Garamond, Granjon,...
, Giovanni Mardersteig's Dante, and Robert Slimbach
Robert Slimbach
Robert Slimbach is a type designer, who has worked at Adobe Systems since 1987. He has won many awards for his digital typeface designs, including the rarely-awarded Charles Peignot Award from the Association Typographique Internationale, and repeated TDC2 awards from the Type Directors Club.-...
's Minion
Minion (typeface)
Minion is the name of a typeface designed by Robert Slimbach in 1990 for Adobe Systems. The name comes from the traditional naming system for type sizes, in which minion is between nonpareil and brevier...
.