Specimen Nº 24

Atelier Caractère

Four families · twenty-one weights · drawn by hand
Montréal · MMXI–MMXXVI

Letterforms that outlive their century. Turn the page.

Index

  1. I The type tester try before you license
  2. II Caractère Display high-contrast didone · 9 weights
  3. III Caractère Texte transitional text serif · 6 weights
  4. IV Caractère Italique calligraphic italic · 4 weights
  5. V Caractère Capitales ceremonial small caps · 2 weights
  6. VI Plates our letters, out in the world
  7. VII Licensing an honest price, forever
  8. VIII Colophon the foundry, in brief

I · The type tester

Set your own words.

The quick brown fox

Rendered live in the family you chose. Imagine it on your book jacket.

II · Caractère Display

High-contrast didone.

9 weights · for headlines · cut for sizes above 48 pt

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789 & § † ‡

The quick brown fox

The quick brown fox

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

Ink traps drawn in by hand. The hairlines will not forgive cheap paper.

III · Caractère Texte

The quiet workhorse.

6 weights · for long reading · optical sizes 6 to 14 pt

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789 & § † ‡

We believe a text face should disappear. Set solid, tracked a touch open, Caractère Texte carries novels, annual reports, and wedding invitations with the same quiet confidence. It asks for nothing and gives everything back.

True small caps included. Your footnotes will thank you.

IV · Caractère Italique

Written, not slanted.

4 weights · for emphasis · drawn from broad-nib studies

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789 & § † ‡

Elegance is refusal, said with a flourish.

Drawn from broad-nib studies, never slanted from the roman. There is a difference, and you can feel it.

V · Caractère Capitales

For occasions.

2 weights · ceremonial small caps

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
0123456789

Chapitre premier · Édition limitée

For title pages, colophons, and very good news.

VI · Plates

Our letters, out in the world.

Type specimen posters for Baskerville, Sabon and Univers
Plate 1 · EditorialMagazine « Marge », set in Caractère Texte
Decorative alphabet in varied display styles
Plate 2 · StationeryCorrespondence suite, Caractère Italique
Bold geometric alphabet specimen, Caractere Display
Plate 3 · PublishingBook jackets, Caractère Display

A selection of fictional commissions. Real commissions welcome.

VII · Licensing

An honest price, forever.

One payment. Yours to keep. Every license includes all four families, all weights, and our famous kerning.

LicenseIncludesPriceChoose
Bureau 5 workstations · desktop fonts (OTF) · print and static documents · free updates for life $95 Choose
Studio 20 workstations · desktop + webfonts (WOFF2) · unlimited page views · client work included · free updates for life $290 Choose
Maison Unlimited workstations · desktop, web, and app embedding · broadcast and signage · priority support, by letter if you wish $890 Choose
Colorful letterpress wood type poster on the proofing wall
The proofing wall, rue de l'Imprimerie.

VIII · Colophon

Slow letters,
drawn by hand.

Founded in 2011 in a former print shop on rue de l'Imprimerie, Atelier Caractère is three punchcutters, two apprentices, and one very patient cat. We draw every glyph on paper first. We kern in silence. We proof until the ink behaves.

We release one family a year. Some years, we release a comma.

Founded
2011
Families
24
Glyphs per family
1,400
Punchcutters
3

Correspondence

Write to us.
We love letters.

For licenses, custom typefaces, or simply to talk about serifs. We answer every letter within two business days.

webao fictional demo