I’m Arun Venkatesan, and this is the arun.is newsletter, where I share my current obsessions, inspiration from around the web, behind-the-scenes content, and more. 

In this week’s issue:

• Recent blog posts
• Blog posts on the horizon
• The mysterious origin of Leica’s engraved font

Recent blog posts

Since the last issue, I published a blog post called Where to build and host your personal website.  I used my experience building websites to select what I think are the best website platforms, each with its pros and cons. Did you find it helpful? Do you have any questions that you think I should answer in future posts? 

Blog posts on the horizon

While doing some research about my upcoming review of a documentary about Richard Sapper, I remembered that I had a book about him. I pulled it out of my shelf and immediately got lost in it. It lead me to shift gears and write about both the documentary and the book.

The former was created midway through his life, and the latter was released just after he died. Snapshots of a designer’s life, each separated by half a lifetime, should make for a fascinating story.

The mysterious origin of Leica’s engraved font

Decades ago, cameras and lenses were made using time-consuming methods. Lens elements were ground by hand. Metal housings were made using old-fashioned techniques like stamping and machining. 

These days, however, most camera gear is made using modern automated production processes like injection molding. A few exceptions do exist. Leica is the most notable.

Aside from the high-quality metal construction and finishes like black painted brass, the detail among Leica products that always stood out to me is their beautiful engraved typeface. You can see this typeface in action in a video about Leica lens production.

After I purchased a Leica Q and handled it day after day, I started to get curious. I had the know the history behind the typeface.

I did some research, but I didn’t find much. I saw it referred to with names like LG1050 and LG1054 in a few places (I’m guessing LG means Leica-Gravur). I also observed a few different weights that account for creating different text sizes using the same size tool.

Thanks to a helpful article about the 35mm Summicron by Ken Rockwell, I was able to identify that Leica started using that font in the late 80s and early 90s. I began to contact every person I thought would know something about it. Most either said they had no idea or told me that they are also curious and would love to know what I find out.

After a few weeks of searching in my free time, I was frustrated and ready to throw in the towel. Then, a message from a product manager at Leica arrived. They told me that the squared corners are a product of the limitations of CNC engravers in the 80s. I still didn't know the whole story, but it was a start.

I continued my search. The Leica archives and authors of books about Leica couldn’t tell me anything. Again, when I was about to give up hope, an industrial designer at Leica returned one of my messages. They said to me that all they knew is that the typeface was developed at Porsche. 

Porsche? What an unexpected twist. I then contacted the Porsche Archives and pored over hundreds of pictures of Porsche VIN plates and part serial numbers to no avail.

I’m still doing as much research as I can over the internet, but it’s looking like I’ll have to schedule some visits to Leica and Porsche the next time I’m in Germany. 

Even though I don’t yet know the complete story, what I do know is quite interesting. It seems Porsche created the typeface within the constraints of CNC machines at that time. Somehow Leica ended up using it exclusively. Fascinating, right?

That's it for this issue. As always, this is my personal email, so feel free to respond directly.

Stay curious,
Arun Venkatesan