font_designer: Dan Solo

Assay

Assay font

This is our name for Antique Tuscan, of which there were many variations. This font came from a large lot purchased around 1970 from an east coast newspaper shop. Subsequently, we acquired several more...

Baraboo Banner

Baraboo Banner font

This was put together by Dan X. Solo to provide a quick way to set headings for a circus brochure. The name was given in recognition of the Baraboo Circus Museum. The end pieces...

Beijing

Beijing font

One of the many Solotype experiments in developing fonts with an ethnic flavor, this one is a bit less obvious than most. The lowercase seems to work well.

Gladiate

Gladiate font

This was a favorite of job printers in late Victorian times. They used it on cards and stationery, as well as small handbills. It was made in a range of sizes from 10 point...

Manifesto Bold

Manifesto Bold font

In digitizing this old font, we took great liberties with the design, removing some jarring elements. The result reads much more smoothly than the original, retaining the overall character of the original. Hope you...

Mardi Gras Improved

Mardi Gras Improved font

George Bruce’s New York foundry had a remarkable number of decorative types, most of which were lost or destroyed when the firm was taken over by the American Type Founders Co. and closed down...

Paper Lanterns

Paper Lanterns font

At the very least, you’ll need this for the Chinese New Year celebration. This was designed in the year of the monkey, and includes all the usual accents for Western European languages. Caps have...

Penelope

Penelope font

This was originally brought out as a caps-only font, but later the foundry scrounged up a lowercase that wasn’t our idea of a very good match. So we cleaned up the caps and made...

Kitcat

Kitcat font

This was a favorite of the old time job printers;­ decorative but readable. The MacKellar foundry was the largest and most creative of the old foundries, and decorative fonts like this one came out...

Eastlake

Eastlake font

Eastlake was a popular furniture style of the period when the MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan foundry brought out this font. As with many types, we find it difficult to see the connection between the...