Who is unfamiliar with the type Optima of Palatino or the more recent Chancery? They are just a few of the 176 types designed by Zapf, a shy, but eclectic man, self-taught and yet teacher in universities all over the world.

This volume offers a complete account of the designer’s skills, from examples of this calligraphy to the design of his types. Introduced by the ingenious designer Bruno Munari, this edition illustrates all of Zapf’s creativity, with the aid of 300 examples, mostly in colour. To get a clearer idea of the various stages of his work, the author proposes a series of lectures and articles which, over the years, trace his extraordinary skill and professionalism.

This is his first book in Italian, while many in the most important languages have already appeared abroad, where he is recognised as one of the greatest creators of types, from lead to photocomposition and right up to the most recent studies of digitalised alphabets.

Format: 20,5 X 30 cm; 280 pp with 144 pages in colour and over 100 pages of illustrations and type specimens. Photocomposition in Optima, printed in offset, cloth binding with dustjacket.