A couple years ago I acquired an original specimen of Dwiggins’s Caledonia type — an amazing face, in the original metal. I was especially captivated by the counters in the arched letters . . . What if I combined this sort of structure with a contemporary, spartan finish?

The result is unabashedly digital — with various corners, facets, and sharpnesses. At text sizes, however, these features are subsumed, adding a crispness to the characters without drawing undue attention. As the size increases, these same details begin to emerge and lend a distinctive, modern quality to the letterforms.

Whitman was honored in 2002 by the Type Directors Club in their annual TDC² competition.

Special thanks to Matthew Carter, John Downer, Roy Preston, and Jill Pichotta for their generous advice, critiques, and encouragement during the development of Whitman.