Art Deco fonts and 1920s geometric display faces
Hairline geometrics, multi-line capitals and high-contrast display faces in the manner of the 1920s and 1930s, with two Bauhaus relatives.
The Grand Hotel
Art Deco lettering belongs to the years between the wars: cinema façades, ocean liner posters, cocktail menus, the title pages of jazz-age novels. It took the new geometric alphabet of the 1920s and dressed it up. Proportions became theatrical, with the crossbars of A, E and H pushed very high or very low. Round letters were true circles beside narrow straight ones. Strokes were either hairline thin or dramatically split into thick and thin, and capitals were often filled with parallel inline stripes.
Those are the signs to look for. A low or high waist on the capitals is the quickest tell. Extreme contrast in width between O and E is another. Many Deco faces are capitals only, or have a lowercase with a tiny x-height and tall ascenders, which gives the lanky elegance of the period.
The style is at its most convincing in short lines of spaced capitals, in metallic or cream on a dark ground, with thin rules and simple geometric ornament. A related movement is represented here too: the stricter Bauhaus lettering of the same years, plainer in construction and without the ornament. The notes say which source each record cites.
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Limelight
Heavy stems against hairline strokes, in a high-contrast geometric style its notes link to the 1920s, the theater and Hollywood film.
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Poiret One
Hairline geometric letters with Art Deco proportions, built from circles and straight lines.
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Righteous
Heavy, even strokes on a grid with an arched A and near-circular bowls, after the capitals on deco posters by a Hungarian artist.
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Monoton
Each stroke is split into thin parallel lines, a take on multi-line metal types of the early 1930s, for sizes above 30 points.
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Josefin Sans
Near-circular rounds and an x-height at half the cap height, drawn with geometric sans serifs of the 1920s in mind.
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Jost
A wide, round O and G beside a narrow E, F and S, with sharply pointed A, M and N, drawing on German sans serifs of the 1920s.
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Staatliches
Narrow, heavy capitals drawn in response to the title lettering of a 1923 Bauhaus exhibition catalog.
Samples load a basic Latin subset of each family. Every family here carries an open license; its page states the terms and offers the original files.
Questions about art Deco fonts and 1920s geometric display faces
What makes a font look Art Deco?
Geometric construction with exaggerated proportions: very high or low crossbars, circular rounds beside narrow letters, strong thick-thin contrast or hairline strokes, and often inline decoration.
Which font should I use for a 1920s party invitation?
A hairline geometric or an inline display face for the title, set in spaced capitals, with a plain light sans for the details.
Are these Art Deco fonts free for commercial projects?
Yes. Every family here is under the SIL Open Font License, which allows commercial use, embedding and modification. The fonts may not be sold on their own.