LL Ivory is Aurèle Sack’s first in-depth development of a full family of serifs. The first styles were initiated in 2016, when Aurèle was appointed typographic consultant to Vogue Hommes Paris. This led to a commission for a new titling font, ‘an expressive, yet elegant serif typeface’, to accompany his own LL Brown which had already been in use at the magazine.

Aurèle found inspiration in some 19th century wood type and poster fonts of American origin. Applying his signature method of reassessing, interpreting and modulating historic sources, Aurèle devised a character set that kept the very extended proportions, but refined the strong contrast and pronounced serifs, while adding some capricious details. This process lead him quite far from the source, in result creating a new formulation with its very own, distinct aesthetic.

Vogue Hommes was also in need for a text version of the typeface, and for that purpose Aurèle first derived a version of much narrower proportions. From this ‘intermediate’ style he moved on to the regular character set with reduced contrast and more pronounced serifs. It was an unusual ‘reverse’ process, but by relying on his method of strict grids and geometric shapes, he prevailed. All of Aurèle’s typefaces are constructed on intricate grids – reminiscent of his time at the fundamentally grid-guided design practice NORM –, and even in a serif typeface like LL Ivory you will discover manifestations of very strict geometry.

His systematic approach again proved helpful when it came to adjusting the Vogue Hommes titling serif shapes for broader use. The concept of the letter-shapes remained untouched, but contrast was further reduced for the text version, which led to a more focussed appearance with maximum grip. A major final adjustment concerned the detailing of the serifs, which were trimmed and slimmed in both the display and text versions. The final design lend the body type a clear-cut and sturdy appearance, while they preserve some of the extravagance of the display family.

In comparison with other contemporary serif typefaces, the final rendering of the LL Ivory family exhibits relatively little contrast and sharpness. It’s an unusually solid and sturdy serif with pronounced shapes and character, and the three monospaced cuts provide the family with plenty of room for extended play. The entire family has the surgically clean and precise feel characteristic for much of Aurèle’s work. After years of development and refinement and having been tested, in various stages of its development, in art catalogues, books, magazine work, and for graphic identities, it is now ready for wide release.