Wood Type: Wide Slab

Stephen Coles

Last edited June 29, 2016

Fonts that are similar to the popular early 20th century wood type that went by several names including Antique Extended and Hellenic Wide. The original typefaces were wide slab serifs, usually with very little contrast and often set in all caps.

Joy Redick designed Blackoak, a big and heavy Egyptienne-sytle titling slab serif face, in 1990. The extremely robust style of the characters in this typeface was consciously distorted; creating letterforms that appear flattened and stretched, like a rubber band. Blackoak is drawn in the style of old wood tpes, just like those that one envisions when one thinks of the large, decorative posters... Read More