FF Meta

Designer: Erik Spiekermann // Foundry: FontFont // Country of origin: Germany Release year: 1991 // Classification: Neo-Humanist Sans

The first rendition of Erik Spiekermann’s most famous typeface was a commission from the West German Post Office. They never used the design, but the subsequent FF Meta became one of the most successful typefaces designed in the digital era. The brief was a spatially economical face for use at small sizes on cheap paper. Spiekermann’s solution was a combination of Humanist and Grotesque concepts, a mildly rationalized design with open forms and just enough of the pen in its contrast and forms to maintain readability. The ideas in FF Meta, along with the FontFont label he co-founded, ushered in a new genre of sans serifs that exemplify digital typography. Good for: Modern, readable text; 25 years later, it still feels fresh.