Wilhelm Klingspor Gotisch™ was designed in 1925 by Rudolf Koch for the Klingspor Bros. Foundry in Offenbach, Germany. Koch, who was chief designer at Klingspor, named the font in honor of the foundry's co-owner. Koch was a remarkable calligrapher, artist, and designer. This face, admired and emulated by blackletter aficionados around the world, is probably the finest existing example of a textura typeface. Textura (also known as blackletter or gothic) is the style of writing developed in Northern Europe in the middle ages. The use of space in blackletter is quite different from what we know about Roman letterforms. The lowercase forms in such writing and typefaces must be evenly textured with black and white elements, like the texture of weaving or fabric. Gothic capital letters can provide either an integration of the even texture (by the use of ornamental forms) or, if they are wide and open and filled with white, they provide bright spots of visual emphasis. Both the caps and the lowercase in Wilhelm Klingspor Gotisch are handsome, vigorous, and masterful; and the spacing is almost as good as Gutenberg's. Use this sparkling gothic gem in sizes 14 point or larger for Christmas greetings, certificates, wedding invitations, advertising, or music collateral pieces.
