TYPE DESIGN INFORMATION PAGE last updated on Mon Apr 15 05:43:49 EDT 2024

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ABOUT

Ole Berntsen Søndergaard

Danish graphic designer and signwriter, b. 1937, who studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Copenhagen (1961-1964) and has taught there from 1966 until 1978. He ran his own graphic design studio in Elsinore in 1973. Co-founder and partner of Eleven Danes, 1985-1995. He has designed signage systems for banks, offices and public buildings in Denmark, Sweden and the Middle East, and did a lot of corporate design for Danish banks and Danish industry.

He created the well-known FF Signa typeface family in 2000, originally for signage, but also useful in text. This was complemented by FF Signa Extended and FF Signa Condensed in 2001, FF Signa Serif in 2005, FF Signa Correspondence Pro in 2006, FF Signa Stencil Pro and FF Signa Serif Stencil Pro in 2011, the 70-style FF Signa Slab Pro in 2013, and FF Signa Round Pro and FF Signa Slab Stencil in 2017.

Ole designed Thule Letters (2005) based on carved letters on Knud Rasmussen's monument. Other typefaces include Public (1980, sans), and Helsingør (1980, a serif typeface for the town signage in Elsinore).

With Morten Rostgaard Olsen, he set up Fontpartners. Together, they made FP Dancer (2007, an upright part script part sans part serif concoction), FP Palina (Futura Stencil face, 2006-2007), FP Quality (rounded stencil, 2006-2007), FP Silly (wavy stencil, 2005; free at Fontshop), FP Stage (2006-2007, wide display grunge).

Custom fonts at Fontpartners include Elsinore (2005, serif), Public (2005), Signa Tryg (Søndergaard, 2003). FP Dancer (2007) is described by Jan Middendorp as follows: In the sans serif realm, spelling out human and warm, while avoiding to become childish or silly, isn't as easy as some type designers assume. Morten Olsen's Dancer is one of those new, and newly conceived, text typefaces that seem to do the job. It strikes a balance between typographic quality and charisma, between conventional wisdom about legibility, and expressiveness. Also, it has an equally eloquent serifed companion.

In 2015, Morten Rostgaard Olsen (Fontapartners), Ole Søndergaard and Henrik Birkvig co-designed the free typefaces KBH and KBH Pictos for the visual identity of the city of Copenhagen. At the retail level, one can buy FP Kobenhavn at MyFonts and FontShop.

FontShop link. Klingspor link.

View Ole Sondergaard's typefaces.

EXTERNAL LINKS
Ole Berntsen Søndergaard
 [Designer info]
Monotype link
Klingspor Museum page
MyFonts search
Monotype search
Fontspring search
Google search

INTERNAL LINKS
Type designers ⦿ Type designers ⦿ The Danish type scene ⦿ Signage typefaces ⦿ Stencil fonts ⦿