Foundry Deberny and Peignot

The Foundry Deberny and Peignot is resulting from the Fusion-acquisition in 1923 between opulent Fonderie G. Peignot & Fils and failing Fonderie Deberny. It is one of the last florets of the French Typographie .

Historical elements

The history of this family company starts with the repurchase of a foundry of white (in 1850, one bought Blanc S to separate the printed words) by Clémentine Dupont de Vieux Bridge (1815-1897), married to Laurent Peignot (1811-1852). She manages to make thrive the business and to impose on it her son, Gustave Peignot (1839-1899). A few decades later, the Peignot line sees appearing a head of undertaking visionary and talented, Georges Peignot (1872-1915), who launches the Foundry on the way of the risk, success and opulence. It launches the Cochin and the Grasset, which make the fame of the company and the name Peignot.

Died with the combat, Georges Peignot leaves the company between the hands of his son, Charles Peignot (1897-1984), more impassioned by the edition (testifies to them a prestigious and famous review, graphic Arts and trades ) that by smoke of a typographical factory. At the time when the things are already badly, Charles Peignot launches out to body lost in the launching of a Photocomposeuse, promising but without future. The company is not concerned any. It files for bankruptcy in 1974.

Typographical glory

It remains of this epopee of prestigious creations:

the Grasset (drawing: Eugene Grasset, 1898-1901);
the Frenchwoman-light , the Frenchwoman-lengthened , the Auriol-labor, the Auriol-champlevé, and the Robur (drawing: George Auriol, 1902-1907);
the Bellery-Desfontaines-broad and the Bellery-Desfontaines-narrow (drawing: Henri Bellery-Desfontaines, 1910-1912);
the Polyphème (fatty) and the Cyclopean (thin) (anonymous drawing, 1910);
the Cochin Roman and Italic, the Nicolas-Cochin Roman and Italic, the Black-the-Young person, the Baker-the-Young person, labels and ornaments Baker (drawing: P. Roy and A. Marty)
the Garamond Roman and Italic (regravés by Henri Parmentier, starting from the prints on rag paper of the character original Garamond, under the meticulous control of Georges Peignot (1912-1914); launched in 1926)
the Naudin Roman, Italic and champlevé (drawing: Bernard Naudin, 1909-1914; launched in 1924)
Guy-Arnoux capitals (drawing: Guy Arnoux, 1914)
the Peignot and the Bifur (drawing: Cassandre, 1926-1928)
the Universe (drawing: Adrian Frutiger, 1957).

Among the claims to fame, let us retain two:

the collection the Pleiad of the editions Gallimard is printed in Garamond de Peignot;
the text of Paul Valéry with the pediment of the Ancien Palate of Trocadéro is composed in Peignot.

Among the more doubtful feats of arms, the studio Deberny & Peignot realizes in 1942 the stereotype of the French version of Jewish star declined according to the countries (cf Michel Wlassikoff, Histoire of graphics in France , decorative arts, 2005).

A street in Paris, close to the street Gutenberg, bears the name of “street of the Four-Brothers-Peignot” to make memory with the three brothers of Georges Peignot who, like, lost to him the life during the First World War.

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