Zuzana Licko

Zuzana Licko (Slovak: Zuzana Ličko; born 1961) is a typeface designer from Bratislava.

According to an article by Rhonda Rubenstein in Eye (No. 43, Vol. 11, Spring 2002): "Born in Czechoslovakia, Licko (pronounced Litchko) emigrated to the US with her family as a schoolgirl. She studied architecture, photography and computer programming before taking a degree in graphic communications at the University of California at Berkeley." [1]

Emigre

In the mid-1980s Zuzana Licko and Rudy Vanderlans founded Emigre. Emigre produced the magazine, Emigre, and designed and distributed original fonts. Vanderlans was editor of the magazine, while Licko was responsible for many successul Emigre fonts. In the mid-1990s, Licko worked on two notable revivals: Mrs Eaves, based on Baskerville, and Filosofia, based on Bodoni. Both are Licko's personal interpretations of their historical models and each features extensive ligatures.

In an interview featured in Eye (No. 43, Vol. 11, Spring 2002), Licko described her creative relationship with Vanderlans:

We met at the University of California at Berkeley where I was an undergraduate at the College of Environmental Design and Rudy was a graduate student in photography. This was in 1982-83. After college we both did all sorts of design-related odd jobs. There was no direction. Then, in 1984 the Macintosh was introduced, we bought one, and everything started to fall into place. We both, each in our own way, really enjoyed this machine. It forced us to question everything we had learnt about design. We both enjoyed that process of exploration, of how far you could push the limits. Rudy is more intuitive; I’m more methodical. Yin and yang. It seemed to click, and still does.^[1]

Fonts designed by Licko

Lo-Res, 1985 and 2001 [2]
Modula, 1985 [3]
Citizen, 1986. [4]
Matrix, 1986 [5]
Lunatix, 1988 [6]
Oblong, 1988 [7]
Senator, 1988 [8]
Variex, 1988 [9]
Elektrix, 1989. [10]
Triplex, 1989 [11]
Journal, 1990. [12]
Tall Pack, 1990 [13]
Totally Gothic, 1990 [14]
Matrix Script, 1992 [15]
Narly, 1993 [16]
Dogma, 1994. [17]
Whirligig, 1994 [18]
Base Nine and Twelve, 1995. [19]
Soda Script, 1995 [20]
Mrs. Eaves, 1996 [21]
Filosofia, 1996. [22]
Base Monospace, 1997. [23]
Hypnomedia, 1997. [24]
Tarzana, 1998 [25]
Solex, 2000 [26]
Puzzler, 2005 [27]
Mr. Eaves Sans and Modern, 2009. [28]

Essays by Licko

With Rudy VanderLans, Ambition/Fear, Emigre 11, edited by Rudy VanderLans, 1989. [29]
Discovery by Design, Emigre 32, edited by Rudy VanderLans, 1994. [30]
Ceramics and Type Design: Differently Similar, online at the Emigre website. Undated. [31]

References

Dooley, Michael. Graphic Design USA 18. “Critical Conditions: Zuzana Licko, Rudy VanderLans, and the Emigre Spirit.” 1998.

External links

Notes

^ Eye, Number 43, Volume 11, Spring 2002.

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[1] Eye, Number 43, Volume 11, Spring 2002.

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