You probably haven't heard of Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones (unless you're an art director, in which case you've got their number on speed dial). But if you've picked up Rolling Stone, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, the New York Times Magazine or the hip new business magazine Fast Company, if you've strolled through the Guggenheim or Whitney museum, if you've dutifully filled out the 2000 Census form or watched ESPN, you've seen a sampling of the 500 original typefaces they've designed.
From Hoefler Type Foundry, their studio in Manhattan's SoHo district, the duo (they're both 29 years old and began designing in their...