Miller (typeface)
Encyclopedia
Miller is a transitional serif
typeface
released in 1997 by the Font Bureau
, a U.S.-based digital type
foundry
. It was designed by Matthew Carter
, based on the "Scotch Roman" style which originates from types cut by Richard Austin
in Scottish type foundries in the early 19th century.
The general purpose versions of Miller are Miller Text and Miller Display, though since their release they have given rise to a number of variants, including Miller Daily, Miller Headline and Miller Banner, as well as some variants commissioned for use in specific publications. The Miller family is widely used, mostly in newspapers and magazines.
and Cyrus Highsmith, and the encouragement of James Mosley, a librarian at St Bride Library
.
Miller is a "Scotch Roman"—a style which originated in types cut by Richard Austin
at the Scottish type foundries of Alexander Wilson and William Miller in the period of 1810–1820. Although Miller remains faithful to the Scotch Roman style (for example, in having both roman and italic small caps
), it is not based on any single historical example. Mosley described Carter's revival of Miller as follows:
, while Miller Banner features in Glamour
magazine. Another Miller variant, Miller News, was commissioned by Simon Esterson of The Guardian
for his 1998 redesign of the newspaper, Miller Globe was designed for The Boston Globe
, and Bibliographical Miller was commissioned by the University of California, Los Angeles
for use in its Aldine Press
incunable collection. The Miller family has also been used in the National Post
, The Straits Times
, The Dallas Morning News
, Hindustan Times
and the San Jose Mercury News
.
A 2005 survey by Ascender Corporation
found Miller to be the tenth most popular typeface featured in American newspapers. , it is Carter's biggest source of royalties amongst the fonts to which he owns the rights.
Serif
In typography, serifs are semi-structural details on the ends of some of the strokes that make up letters and symbols. A typeface with serifs is called a serif typeface . A typeface without serifs is called sans serif or sans-serif, from the French sans, meaning “without”...
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....
released in 1997 by the Font Bureau
Font Bureau
The Font Bureau, Inc. or Font Bureau is a digital type foundry based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The foundry is one of the leading designers of typefaces, specializing in type designs for magazine and newspaper publishers....
, a U.S.-based digital type
Computer font
A computer font is an electronic data file containing a set of glyphs, characters, or symbols such as dingbats. Although the term font first referred to a set of metal type sorts in one style and size, since the 1990s it is generally used to refer to a scalable set of digital shapes that may be...
foundry
Type foundry
A type foundry is a company that designs or distributes typefaces. Originally, type foundries manufactured and sold metal and wood typefaces and matrices for line-casting machines like the Linotype and Monotype machines designed to be printed on letterpress printers...
. It was designed by Matthew Carter
Matthew Carter
Matthew Carter is a type designer. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Carter's career in type design has witnessed the transition from physical metal type to digital type...
, based on the "Scotch Roman" style which originates from types cut by Richard Austin
Richard Austin (punchcutter)
Richard Austin was an English punchcutter. He was the original cutter of typefaces Bell, Scotch Roman, and Porson. Born in London, he studied wood engraving under Thomas Berwick before joining John Bell's British Letter Foundry in 1788 as a punch-cutter, where he worked until the foundry closed...
in Scottish type foundries in the early 19th century.
The general purpose versions of Miller are Miller Text and Miller Display, though since their release they have given rise to a number of variants, including Miller Daily, Miller Headline and Miller Banner, as well as some variants commissioned for use in specific publications. The Miller family is widely used, mostly in newspapers and magazines.
Background
The Miller family was designed by Matthew Carter and developed by Carter with the assistance of the Font Bureau's Tobias Frere-JonesTobias Frere-Jones
Tobias Frere-Jones is a prolific type designer who works in New York City with fellow type designer Jonathan Hoefler at Hoefler & Frere-Jones, a type foundry in lower Manhattan...
and Cyrus Highsmith, and the encouragement of James Mosley, a librarian at St Bride Library
St Bride Library
St Bride Library is a library in London primarily devoted to printing, book arts, typography and graphic design...
.
Miller is a "Scotch Roman"—a style which originated in types cut by Richard Austin
Richard Austin (punchcutter)
Richard Austin was an English punchcutter. He was the original cutter of typefaces Bell, Scotch Roman, and Porson. Born in London, he studied wood engraving under Thomas Berwick before joining John Bell's British Letter Foundry in 1788 as a punch-cutter, where he worked until the foundry closed...
at the Scottish type foundries of Alexander Wilson and William Miller in the period of 1810–1820. Although Miller remains faithful to the Scotch Roman style (for example, in having both roman and italic small caps
Small caps
In typography, small capitals are uppercase characters set at the same height and weight as surrounding lowercase letters or text figures...
), it is not based on any single historical example. Mosley described Carter's revival of Miller as follows:
Matthew Carter's Miller is not a facsimile of Miller's Scotch Roman, any more than his Galliard was a facsimile of any one type by Robert Granjon. What it has done is to capture the good color, and the generous breadth and modelling of its model, and to bring a valid version of 'Scotch Roman' back into current use after a lapse [in England] of some decades. Miller was made with current production needs in mind, of which the two versions, 'Display' and the more robust 'Text' versions are evidence, and so is its relatively large x-height.
Variants
As well as the general purpose versions of Miller, Miller Text and Miller Display, numerous variants designed by Carter and others have been added to the Miller family. Variants include:- Miller Daily is an expanded series of Miller News, an adaptation of Miller designed by Carter for The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. It was released by the Font Bureau in 2002 alongside the Miller Headline series. - Miller Headline was designed by Carter and Highsmith specifically for use in newspaper headlines. It was released by the Font Bureau in 2002 with the Miller Daily series.
- Miller Banner was designed by Richard Lipton for use in large settings, over 100 pointsPoint (typography)In typography, a point is the smallest unit of measure, being a subdivision of the larger pica. It is commonly abbreviated as pt. The point has long been the usual unit for measuring font size and leading and other minute items on a printed page....
. It has sharper hairlines and softer contrast.
Usage
Miller and its variants are widely used in newspapers, magazines and other publications around the world. Miller Daily is used for body copy in The Washington PostThe Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, while Miller Banner features in Glamour
Glamour (magazine)
Glamour is a women's magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. Founded in 1939 in the United States, it was originally called Glamour of Hollywood....
magazine. Another Miller variant, Miller News, was commissioned by Simon Esterson of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
for his 1998 redesign of the newspaper, Miller Globe was designed for The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
, and Bibliographical Miller was commissioned by the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
for use in its Aldine Press
Aldine Press
Aldine Press was the printing office started by Aldus Manutius in 1494 in Venice, from which were issued the celebrated Aldine editions of the classics . The Aldine Press is famous in the history of typography, among other things, for the introduction of italics...
incunable collection. The Miller family has also been used in the National Post
National Post
The National Post is a Canadian English-language national newspaper based in Don Mills, a district of Toronto. The paper is owned by Postmedia Network Inc. and is published Mondays through Saturdays...
, The Straits Times
The Straits Times
The Straits Times is an English language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore currently owned by Singapore Press Holdings . It is the country's highest-selling paper, with a current daily circulation of nearly 400,000...
, The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
, Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded in 1924 with roots in the Indian independence movement of the period ....
and the San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
The San Jose Mercury News is a daily newspaper in San Jose, California. On its web site, however, it calls itself Silicon Valley Mercury News. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group...
.
A 2005 survey by Ascender Corporation
Ascender Corporation
Ascender Corporation is a digital typeface foundry and software development company located in the Chicago suburb of Elk Grove Village, Illinois in the United States...
found Miller to be the tenth most popular typeface featured in American newspapers. , it is Carter's biggest source of royalties amongst the fonts to which he owns the rights.
External links
- Miller at the Font BureauFont BureauThe Font Bureau, Inc. or Font Bureau is a digital type foundry based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The foundry is one of the leading designers of typefaces, specializing in type designs for magazine and newspaper publishers....
- Miller at FontShopFontShopFontShop was founded in Berlin in 1989 by Erik Spiekermann and Joan Spiekermann, who were then husband and wife, and Neville Brody. FontShop was the first font reseller in digital type history. There are four independent FontShops in Austria, Benelux, Germany, and the USA.FSI FontShop International...