This year, Bloomberg Businessweek’s year-end double issue is focused on the year ahead, but it also includes a number of very dense spreads of hard data from various industries, showing a snapshot of the current state of many companies. In order to pack as much information as possible into the limited space available, creative director Richard Turley commissioned an Agate version of Neue Haas Grotesk in a number of duplexed weights.
Compared to the existing Text version, which is drawn for use around 8pt to 12pt, the Agate, drawn for use at 4pt to 6pt, has a larger x-height, smaller cap height, looser spacing overall, and ink traps to counteract the effects of ink on paper, which has a dramatic effect on text set at such small sizes. In order to deal with long company names and very large numbers, condensed versions were created for some parts of the character set.
As one final touch, we made an agate version of the logotype, ensuring it would remain readable on the spine at 2.76mm tall, or about 5pt.
Update 13 December: It took less than a month for this Agate to be used as the primary display face on a cover. The aesthetic of inktraps never really goes out of style…
Neue Haas Grotesk Agate will not be available for licensing.
