Lyyra
Schick Toikka · Florian Schick, Lauri Toikka
An expressive sans across Standard, Extended and Expanded widths in five weights with italics; counters bloom into petals and stroke endings cut vertically.
About
Lyyra is a typeface with a radical aesthetic that alternates between the organic and the mechanical. Its lowercase counters start from a point and grow into acute symmetrical petals; arches start low and ascend slowly, like tree branches, and stroke endings are all cut vertically for a bare look. The high-waisted caps channel German grotesks from the 1910s. The family eschews condensed widths in favour of more luxuriant Extended and downright decadent Expanded styles, with each of the three widths spanning five weights with matching italics. Lining figures sit alongside oldstyle, tabular and sub-/superscript numerals plus fractions; rounded alternates are available where the default diamond dots are too daring.
Classification
Schick Toikka cite Edward Johnston's Railway Type (1918) and Roger Excoffon's Antique Olive (1960s) as the few predecessors for Lyyra's bare, vertically cut stroke endings; the high-waisted caps channel German grotesks from the 1910s.