Warren Chappell

Warren Chappell (1904 – March 26, 1991) was an American illustrator, book and type designer, and writer.

Early life Warren Chappell was born in 1904 in Richmond, Virginia. He drew and modeled with clay at a young age. According to his obituary, at the age of 11, magazine drawings by Boardman Robinson led him to become an artist. He was Artist-in-Residence at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He had a studio in the library stacks. The semi-bold weight however, was prepared by the foundry, Chappell having only made drawings (starting with a broad nibbed pen, then refining the contours using opaque white as if using a graver) for the roman and italic designs. The Huxley House specimen book for it was featured in a 1952 AIGA design annual.

Chappell's book The Living Alphabet (1975) was set entirely in Trajanus by Finn Typographic of Stamford Connecticut.

Personal life Chappell married Lydia Hatfield. He named the Lydian typeface after his wife Lydia.

Chappell moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1978. He died on March 26, 1991, at his home in Charlottesville.