Born in 1918 in Nuremberg and died in 2015 in Darmstadt, Hermann Zapf taught himself calligraphy from the books of Edward Johnston and Rudolf Koch. He became art director of the Stempel foundry in Frankfurt, and took an early interest in computer-aided typography.
Vision
Zapf saw calligraphy as the foundation of all typography. He was also one of the first to think about the quality of typesetting on computers, with research that inspired the typesetting engines of today's software.
Works
His work includes Palatino, Optima, Melior, Zapf Dingbats, Zapf Chancery and Zapfino.
Legacy
He is one of the most prolific and admired type designers of the 20th century. His typefaces, shipped with many computers and printers, have become familiar to millions of people.