Robbie is a short story written by Isaac Asimov, and first published in 1940 under the title Strange Playfellow. Lucas Mosesson used the text as the starting point for creating a book with an experimental layout, set entirely in CoFo Sans Mono. The project was made as a student project at Lycée Camille Claude, a design school in Blois, France. Lucas comments:

The project ROBBIE: An Interactive Novel reimagines the structure of a conventional edition by opting for an interactive approach that renews the reading experience. It highlights the human dimension through design and interaction processes that involve the human hand. Scratching, cutting, tearing, pasting, unfolding… the interactions are numerous and serve to illustrate the story through gestures, actions, and movements rather than images. This reedition invites the reader to become an actor and shape the narrative through their manipulations. The project establishes connections with current issues related to technology and robotics through a science fiction narrative that encourages reflection. All of this is contained within an ephemeral book whose degradation is necessary to fully enjoy the experience.

The typeface selection is related to the main themes of this work: Isaac Asimov’s short story Robbie revolves around robots and technology! For me, CoFo Sans directly recalls the early digital fonts derived from more traditional typewriter typefaces. This allows for a blending of the human and digital dimensions, with a font that simultaneously exists in the past, nostalgia, present, and future!

Furthermore, it is particularly effective when applying rules and grids to achieve stricter compositions. At times, one might even have the impression of seeing lines of code or script. CoFo Sans is also useful when it comes to make patterns or typographic effects with repetitive characters.

For the fourth time in one year, I've created a temporary sign for the local café Le Liber'thés in Blois, France.

After a first one using Banco and a green gradient (see bottom), for this one I’ve adapted Bild from the Font of the Month Club (DJR). I also tried to execute a reversed Touriga Casual lettering (designed by Fernando Mello) at the top and the bottom of the sign. And as I have a sort of freedom (“Liberté” in French, hence the name of the place), or ‘carte blanche’, I've also tested two colors combinations.

Definitly not a perfect hand painted sign (no sharp corners, many wonky shapes, etc.), but just a way of practice and try some ideas and see the reactions.

The mosaic on the lettering is (not changed every quarter of course) is modeled after Blippo Black.

Plain view of the main window. Red over white shadow.

The second window on the left side of the café. With a missing leg on the R...

The spring sign, made in April 2022, and using Banco in a green gradient.

After so many lockdowns, it's time to shape new things and “time to make it happen!”. A nice "papillon" could help me to do this and mostly other people to understand the need to do it in real life with papers, inks, and so on.

And for this Job Clarendon did the job very well, completed by Plantin in the back. The small text ads a question to the line set in Job Clarendon: “Perhaps with a printed medium to mark the spirit?”

Fresh silkscreen ink on the back !

This label was designed by Étienne Pouvreau for the new sparkling grape juice from Domaine des Claires “Bulles de Raisin”, their first non-alcoholic beverage aimed to Cognac cocktails’ enthusiastics, teetotalers and kids.

The name is set in all lowercase Granville put on an angle while others informations are displayed with Stratos ranging from Light to Thin. Various yellow circles echo sparkling bubbles.