Vocal Type is at it again. Type luminary Tré Seals‘ font foundry has recently released the latest in a cache of fonts inspired by historic moments and movements, this time shedding light on typographic production during World War II. In partnership with typeface designer, font engineer, and researcher Michele Patanè of the UK-based studio Cinetype, Seals brings us VTC Garibaldi Sans Extra Condensed.
VTC Garibaldi is an eclectic family composed of the various typefaces used throughout antifascist material that was distributed during WWII, including flyers, journals, and posters. It’s named after a journal from that era called the Brigate Garibaldi, which was one of the largest and best organized groups of the Resistance. The Garibaldi Brigades were aligned with the Italian Communist Party and were active in the armed resistance against both German and Italian fascist forces.
The typographic production of these antifascist materials was scrappy and done in secret, considering the unthinkable repercussions of being discovered. There was little time, few resources, and limited typographic prowess for elaborate designs or technical uniformity, which VTC Garibaldi fondly reflects. It recognizes classic typefaces from the Nebiolo type-foundry, imported typefaces from Germany, wooden type used for headlines or mastheads, monospaced types, and some decorative faces.
“The type family has been conceived as a combination of different styles that work together, giving life to a typographic palette where differences and analogies across the family are the elements that define its own nature,” reads the Vocal Type website. “The overall palette will offer a modernized toolkit of what could have been available to the printers of the Resistance during the fight for liberation from the Fascist regime that ruled Italy.”
Seals and Patanè hope to eventually release VTC Garibaldi Serif, VTC Garibaldi Mono, and a few more families. Until then, VTC Garibaldi Sans Extra Condensed is available for download here.
