I'm Khuyen (pronounced Quin!), and I'm going into my 4th year of design. I'm currently fascinated by typography and type design right now, and with the discussion of Eames today I was reminded of the release of Eames Century Modern by House Industries this year. It's interesting to see the translation and appropriation of Eames' style, which we might consider retro (their body of work being produced from the 1930s to the 1970s), into the subtle nuances present to make a typeface unique. What fascinates me the most is that the typeface is meant to reflect the usability that was iconic in Eames' designs. How usable is a retro typeface in an age where iPads and Kindles are the norm? I strongly recommend taking a look at the entire type family -- the stencil is only shown because of its obvious features for those in the class who are not familiar or fanatical about type like I am. The book face of Eames Century Modern needs to be highly functional (ie: readable) and needs to conform to today's usages in light of its retro characteristics. I've asked myself: Does the typeface succeed in being appropriated by current styles at the same time maintaining its roots in Eames' style? I've only seen examples that highlight its connection to Eames. My hope is that it does succeed elsewhere, or that if it doesn't, that there will always be an Eames project needing a retro feel that the type family can satisfy.
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