Victor Hammer (1882-1967)
Victor Hammer was a craftsman par excellence, who, incredibly, dedicated his life to one single letter form. He devoted more than 40 years perfecting his typefaces based on the uncial - a medieval script used by monks in the 4th century.
He was born in Vienna where he worked as a portraitist and sculptor. He worked as a war artist during World War 1. Early in life, he had been inspired by the ideals and work of William Morris and believed in the holiness of work. His first design -Hammer Uncial - was produced in 1921. He set up a printing press in Florence in 1929. In 1939, he was forced to leave his post as a professor at the Viennese Academy and to flee to America. Here he produced American Uncial - his best known of his five typefaces.
"It is my conviction that the type designer should do his work in the service of the language."
[NOM]
