Mercator

Reviving a modern typeface

Almost everyone in the creative business is familiar with Helvetica and Univers, the ubiquitous typefaces that were designed in mid-20th century Switzerland — the birthplace of modernist graphic design. Dutch designers like Wim Crouwel & Ben Bos introduced modernist graphic design in the Netherlands in that era, giving these neo-grotesques a leading role.

In the Netherlands too, a typeface was being made that would meet the modernist spirit of the times. Amsterdam Type Foundry commissioned type designer Dick Dooijes to design a neutral, sans-serif face. It was released in 1958 — a year after Helvetica — as Mercator and destined to become a viable alternative to the foreign neo-grotesques. However, the typeface did not or hardly appear in the oeuvre of modernist designers and quietly disappeared from the stage with the demise of manual and hot metal typesetting.

In 2015, designers Theo van Beurden and Bauke van der Laan decided to digitize the typeface after discovering a specimen of Mercator. Initially, to explore within their own practice how the typeface would work in a contemporary context. Simultaneously, their perception of Mercator as an important part of the Dutch typographic heritage, grew. They don’t accept that Mercator remains a museum artefact, but aim for the typeface to become a living instrument again. With this project they want to revive Mercator.