Typeface Design for Lineto's Bradford Library

Ten years in the making, rooted in a 19th-century German ancestor

LL Bradford is an all-purpose serif family designed by Laurenz Brunner and released by Lineto in 2018, with production assistance from Wei Huang and Selina Bernet and font engineering by Alphabet, Berlin. Its primary historical reference is Römische Antiqua (1884), a German design that inspired both Plantin (1913) and Times New Roman (1931). The family was refined over ten years, growing to 14 cuts plus a monospace companion, spanning light to black weights each with italics.

Set in LL Bradford

Insights

Brunner's stated goal was to retain the physical presence and character of hot metal type in a digital context.
Römische Antiqua (1884) served as the primary historical reference, with its influence traceable through Plantin and Times New Roman.
The family expanded incrementally over a decade of continuous adaptation, reaching 14 cuts with a separate monospace companion.