Max Caflisch

Max Caflisch – born 25. 10. 1916 in Winterthur, Switzerland, died 16. 2. 2004 – type designer, teacher, author.

1932–36: trains as a compositor. 1936–43: first job setter in various printing works. 1941–42: specialist teacher of typography at the Allgemeine Gewerbeschule in Basle. 1943–62: art director of the Benteli printing works in Bern. 1962–81: head of the graphics department at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Zurich; also teacher of typography. 1973–78: lecturer at the Technikerschule der grafischen Industrie in Zurich. Consultant on type design to IBM in New York (1962–66), for the Bauersche Gießerei in Frankfurt am Main (1965–66), for the Dr. Rudolf Hell company in Kiel (1972–89) and for Adobe Systems Inc. (since 1990).

Font: Columna™ (1952).

Publications include: "William Morris, der Erneuerer der Buchkunst", Bern 1959; "Fakten zur Schriftgeschichte", Zurich 1973; "Schrift und Papier", Grellingen 1973; "Typography braucht Schrift", Kiel 1978. A Berlincourt et al "Max Caflisch. Typographia practica", Hamburg 1988.

* TYPOGRAPHY – An Encyclopedic Survey of Type Design and Techniques Throughout History by Friedrich Friedl, Nicolaus Ott (Editor), Bernard Stein, published by Könemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH.