From ardent traditionalists to irreverent iconoclasts, everyone seems to have strong typographic opinions. If you’re reading this magazine, you also probably have one or two strong opinions about type. Because so many STEP readers are passionate about type, and because the folks at STEP are also devoted fans of the typographic arts, they asked me to guest-edit a special focus on type for this issue.

I was delighted to take on the job. It gave me a chance to share my passion—and to work with some of my friends in the typographic community. I asked John Langdon to explain his obsession with ambigrams and to reveal how he makes them. Erik Spiekermann and I chatted about one of our favorite type topics over a cup of coffee, and the article “Tectonic Arranger & Letterform Designer” is the result. The always opinionated—and predictably irascible—Hermann Püterschein agreed to review a suite of new typeface designs.

We dug into the rumors of the death of Arial. Vikki Quick spent some time with Jared Benson of Punchcut, exploring typography in a very new environment. And Mourad Boutros pulled no punches in explaining why Arabic typography, like the labyrinth, is both beautiful and confounding. I hope that you enjoy reading this special section as much as we enjoyed putting it together.
Allan Haley