Dictionary spells out new look for covers

The Oxford Dictionary range has launched a new cover concept for its books featuring a typeface custom designed by Dalton Maag.

The covers of the Concise Oxford Dictionary, the Little Oxford Dictionary, the Pocket Dictionary and all bilingual publications will have “far more flexibility than ever before”, according to Oxford University Press studio manager Nick Clarke.

This is due to the new, as yet nameless font. “Before we used Mendoza on the covers, which was limited to bold and semi bold. The new font has a variety of weights, which gives more flexibility,” says Clarke.

Dalton Maag partner Bruno Maag has created a typeface which has four variations. “It’s a classical typeface, very elegant and highly visible. We want it to be the first thing you see on going into a bookshop,” he says.

The cover design has been “tweaked and refined” by in-house designer John Taylor, who has “removed all bullet points and emphasised the word English on bilingual dictionaries”. Maag’s fees were around 4000, he says.