Neue Haas Unica
Omega Type Foundry · Toshi Omagari (revival); original by André Gürtler, Erich Gschwind, Christian Mengelt (Team '77) · 2015
A careful digital revival of the 1980 Haas Unica, expanding the original's neogrotesque synthesis of Helvetica and Univers with small caps, Greek and Cyrillic, with the Greek winning first prize at the 2015 Granshan Type Competition.
About
The original Unica was created by Team '77 at the Haas Type Foundry as an attempt to merge the best qualities of Helvetica and Univers into a single coherent neogrotesque. Toshi Omagari discovered the original drawings and negative masters in the Linotype archive near Frankfurt and undertook a thorough revival, making subtle refinements throughout while adding substantial new additions including small caps, Greek and Cyrillic scripts. Published through Linotype (Monotype) in 2015, it brings a historically overlooked typeface into the standards expected of contemporary professional type.
Classification
A neogrotesque revival deliberately synthesising Helvetica and Univers, following the approach of the original 1980 Haas Unica. Its construction, proportions and stroke treatment place it squarely in the neogrotesque tradition pioneered by those two typefaces.