Friedlander Neue is a Transitional Roman typeface, designed by Eunice Bastos, Francisca Rebelo, and Rita Melo in 2024.
Friedlander Neue is a revival and reinterpretation of Elizabeth Antiqua, a typeface originally commissioned in 1927 by the Bauer Type Foundry and completed in 1939 by one of the first recognized women in type design — Elizabeth Friedlander.
Departing from the original assignment brief focused on Tia Lira, the student designers proposed a new direction: to honor the legacy of a female designer often overlooked in typographic history. The resulting project, Friedlander Neue, draws inspiration from the transitional Roman tradition, preserving the anatomy and proportions of the original while introducing adjustments to ensure improved letter width consistency and editorial usability.
Though Transitional in structure, the typeface introduces abrupt serif cuts reminiscent of Latin-style serifs. For refinement, the team referenced typefaces such as ITC New Veljovic®, Caslon, Sectra, and Mason, as well as the calligraphic precision of Sheila Waters.
Designed as a Variable Font with a weight axis ranging from Regular (400) to Bold (700) — and a middle instance at SemiBold (555) — Friedlander Neue offers balanced modulation without extreme contrast. Its moderate modeling, refined serif forms, and humanist tone make it suitable for editorial text, especially in printed reading environments.
See the full specimen booklet here:
