UN-11: A Typographic Cosmology

UN-11: A Typographic Cosmology is part type specimen, part photo series, resulting in a conceptually idiosyncratic yet formally elegant publication. The typeface UN-11, designed by Laurenz Brunner, was released by Source Type in 2025 to considerable acclaim. It was originally created for the 1961 IBM Selectric “golfball,” a small spherical element that allowed typewriter users to switch typefaces.

This “golfball,” an object measuring roughly 4cm × 4cm, serves as the starting point for the book: a photographic series of objects that share intriguing formal and scalar similarities with it. The book itself is equally distinctive, taking the form of a miniature hardcover measuring approximately 6 × 7.5 cm. The images are carefully composed and styled by photographer Charles Nègre and stylist Aline Joanne Rüede, and the book is designed by the Swiss studio Kasper-Florio.