Typeface anatomy

The vocabulary that turns "this font looks modern" into a claim you can defend. Coles' method: read the letterforms, then say what you see.

1. When to invoke

• Comparing typefaces that look similar and needing to articulate the difference.
• Justifying a type choice from evidence.
• Reading a specimen or type-foundry page critically.
• Diagnosing why a face fails at small size or on screen.

Do not invoke to make the final choice (typeface-selection) or to combine faces (typeface-pairing). This skill supplies the evidence those use.

2. Required context