Fides (Type Design)
“Fides” is a Japanese kana font that has been revived as the digital font of an old type used in the Kirishitanban “Fides no Qvio.”
Constantino Dourado, a Japanese national hailing from Hizen Province, accompanied the Tensho Keno Shonen Shisetsu (the Tensho Ambassador to Europe) and acquired typography techniques during a trip to Rome. After returning to Japan, he published the Kirishitanban. At the end of his travels in the days of sail, he returned to Japan with some printing machinery and launched Japan’s first publishing business using Western printing techniques. The greatness of his work is beyond imagination.
Typographic designers stand on the shoulders of giants. Over the course of recorded human history, they take over the assets of people who wrote or inscribed letters and accomplish their duties. Needless to say, Dourado is one of our forerunners. “When I finish my role, I hope the giants will grow again, even if only by one millimeter,” — I sometimes think about such arrogance.
With the latest winning of the Type Design Prize, I feel very encouraged. I really appreciate all of your support.
