Atelier National de Recherche Typographique: fonts for free

The Atelier National de Recherche Typographique (ANRT) was created in 1985 by the French Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, with the aim to "contribute to the development of type design and typography."

Originally established at Imprimerie Nationale (under the name of Atelier National de Création Typographique, 1985–1996), it was later transferred to École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris (1996–1999). Since 2000 ANRT is based at École nationale supérieure d’art et de design (ENSAD) in Nancy.

Directed by Peter Keller from 1990 to 2006, it has trained about one hundred researchers and designers, contributing to the dissemination of French type design and typography, and to the structuring of typographic education in schools of art and design. After a closure of six years, ANRT reopened in October 2012 with a new course director, a new team and a new academic project. It is now an established research unit within the ENSAD Nancy, in the new campus ARTEM (ARt TEchnology Management).

ANRT’s research projects include designing a typeface and now, some of these very creations are available to download for free. 

Among them, is the Chaumont Script designed by Timothée Gouraud and Alexandre Bassi in 2021.

Timothée Gouraud (Fabrication Maison) discovered the work of Chantal Jacquet, sign painter in Chaumont (Haute-Marne, France) in the 1980s.

Intigued by these singular shapes, he contacted ANRT to design a digital font out of it. A complex task, achieved by Alexandre bassi, who managed to transcribe the rythm and cursivity of this script, through a extended character set (2500 glyphs) and complex OpenType Features.

More here.