Skip to main content

Praxis®

By Linotype

Gerard Unger
Linotype
Praxis™ was designed in 1976 by Gerard Unger for the German technology corporation Dr.-Ing Rudolf Hell. Praxis is the sans serif counterpart to Demos, another early digital type designed by Unger, who is an accomplished Dutch typographer and teacher. Praxis and Demos share important characteristics, such as open counters, a tall x-height, and blunt stroke terminations. Both faces have very little thick/thin variation, which facilitates smooth linear enlargement and reduction. And like Demos, Praxis is a flexible and legible typeface that works well in small point sizes and on low-quality paper (office documents, newsletters, newspapers, etc.). The word "Praxis" comes from Greek, and means "a practical application." In the late 1990s, Demos and Praxis, along with Univers 57, were selected as the official typefaces of the German Government. More info. In 1990, Linotype AG merged with Dr.-Ing Rudolf Hell GmbH, forming the Linotype-Hell AG (today Linotype GmbH). Since then, Linotype has been the official source of all fonts that were originally designed for the Hell Corporation. Linotype has also improved the typefaces using new technologies, including OpenType."

In its most basic form, the Praxis design is an excellent example of a sans-serif font. It retains the traditional differentiation between thicker and thinner strokes while still retaining a light, attractive quality.

Praxis was one of the very first sans–serif typefaces created for the Dr. Ing Rudolf Hell Gmbh (or Hell company) digital typesetting machine, also known as the Digiset. Partially as a result of his work with the Hell company, Gerard Unger has become one of the most widely known and respected faces in typography.

References:
Linotype: Praxis Font Family
Gerard Unger: Praxis
Identifont: Praxis
Gerard Unger: Biography
Artyears: Not the Typical Type
Linotype: Gerard Unger

The Praxis design is a very versatile font. Its delicate individuality is as suitable in logotype as it is for situations requiring very small – yet legible – text. It has been utilized effectively in printing situations where other fonts can sometimes fail.

Conversely, because the Praxis design is an attractive typeface, use in much larger–scale projects is completely appropriate. The signature open counters, tall x–height and sharp stroke terminations mean that design remains effective at larger point sizes as well. Company branding can be made strong and recognizable as a result.

Praxis is featured in the media almost every day in Germany, since it was selected as an official German government typeface in the late nineteen–nineties. The typeface was slightly redesigned and rebranded as Neue Praxis (and Neue Demos) for the occasion.

Sans Serif
Grotesque Sans
#91 in Best Sellers