From Tai Kwun Contemporary:

The panoramic exhibition Stay Connected: Art and China Since 2008 presents twenty-first century art that addresses changes in social realities in China and their impacts on the world. Framed through the dual lenses of digital technology and the manufacturing supply chain, the two chapters, titled Stay Connected: Navigating the Cloud (26 Sep 2025 to 4 Jan 2026) and the forthcoming Stay Connected: Supplying the Globe (27 Feb to 31 May 2026), trace a constellation of innovative and alternative artistic practices as well as cultural transformations during this period.

The project uses commonSans Condensed SWAP, a nonlinear variable font by notyourtypefoundry. Chinese characters are custom drawn based on the curves and non-linear animation nature of CommonSans Condensed SWAP.

The designers of Studio Pianpian He and Max Harvey comment:

In Pianpian’s hometown, Changsha, six subway lines were built in just eight years. By the time we returned in 2018, paper money had sort of disappeared. The textures of daily life, and how one perceives the country has shifted entirely when comparing it with the previous century. The early 21st century is marked by plastic surfaces, hyper-cloud networks, and mass consumption. As the curatorial foreword suggests, China itself becomes not just a subject but a concept, one that continues to shape artists’ practice and thinking.

With this in mind, we focused our reasoning on how the visual identity could reflect an environment that fosters this new generation of artists and the dramatic social transformations they navigate. The elusive cloud first led our choice of a typeface: CommonSans, designed by Gao Xiaoyuan. You might think of it as a “bubbly” or “clouded” Heiti, or a Yuanti, the ubiquitous sans serif font and rounded sans of our era, akin to Helvetica, its rounded counterpart or VAG rounded. If Heiti represents the clarity, reliability, modernity, and an emblem of mass production of this time, then CommonSans in its variable form is what remains after, post production: a worn, shaky and hazy face, yet carrying a distinct trace of its moment. Together with Wang Xuechun, we extended this idea by developing a matching Chinese variable font for a fixed amount of characters (not all the thousands), thus completing the visual identity for the exhibition.

The typeface Figura Normal ExtraBold by Typeverything is used across the identity for Rascals Night Pants, a diaper product brand. The typeface appears prominently in the logotype, as well as on packaging design, website titles, and social media posts. The project was designed by ZURU. Tagline and information are set in Area by Blaze Type.

The latest volume in the Type in Use series by Victionary (2024–2025), this book highlights the use of display typefaces, renowned for their boldness and attention-grabbing qualities. They are adaptable across diverse design contexts, seamlessly integrating into print, digital, and beyond. Display in Use brings together the best fonts for big canvases, and provides a reference point for inspiration seeking designers and typographers.

The book was designed by Ben Lee at Victionary. While the D on the front cover is from AC Visual, the back features Dina Chaumont Display. This lowercase-only monospaced typeface is built around the DIN A ratio. This format is used in portrait and landscape; thus two different widths coexist. The letters are designed to fill the surface as much as possible in both cases. This feature gives a distinct appearance and plays on formal and dynamic variations. Instantly recognizable, expressive and playful, Dina Chaumont Display perfectly embodies its role.

The monospaced font used on the spine and also for the info on the typeface pages (not shown) is unidentified [edit: it’s Fraktion Mono, see the comments].

Dina Chaumont Display is also used for the contents page.

Greed in use for Delulu, the fourth perfume made by .Oddity Fragrance in Hong Kong. The packaging was designed in-house by .Oddity Studio. A scent for grown-ups who don’t want to be grown-up – playful, pink, and just the right amount of sour. Capped with old toys, collected from forgotten corners of Hong Kong.

Founded by Angela Lee, JaneClare is unwaveringly committed to clean beauty at the highest safety standards. It is dedicated to creating formulations free from harmful chemicals while maintaining exceptional efficacy.

For our rebranding project, we chose Domaine Display Medium from Klim Type Foundry for the logotype and a combination of Domaine Text and Display for the visual identity. The chosen typography communicates heritage and innovation, reflecting the brand’s unique positioning at the intersection of modern Chinese medicine and contemporary science.

From publisher Victionary:

The Vibrant Artistry of the ’60s & ’70s
What comes to mind when one thinks of the vivid and exhilarating visual world of the 1970s? Is it attention-grabbing lettering and clashing colours, groovy paisley motifs and floral patterns reminiscent of hippie culture, or mind-bending psychedelic visuals that transport one to a different dimension? Funkadelic invites readers to step back in time and witness the audacity and dynamism of an era that embraced individuality and pushed artistic boundaries.

An homage to the graphic design trends and styles that embodied bold expression, cultural revolution, and free-spirited creativity, discover a handpicked selection of visual identities and branding design inspired by the iconic aesthetic of the '70s in a visual treasure trove of inspiration and nostalgia for designers, artists, and era enthusiasts alike.

The type and headlines in the book are set in Oakley by Mark van Leeuwen, accompanied by a yet unidentified typeface [edit: it’s BioRhyme by Aoife Mooney, see comments].

Founded over a century ago, the University of Hong Kong is the region's oldest institution of higher learning. HKU commissioned us to develop a distinct brand identity for a newly formed school, merging the esteemed departments of Computer Science and Statistics and Actuarial Science.

Through our brand strategy workshops, we worked closely with the department’s professors and stakeholders to uncover core values and craft a unique personality and positioning for the school, unified around the purpose of ‘Empowering Changemakers’.

We chose Work Sans for the wordmark and as primary typeface for the CDS brand identity. Work Sans is a grotesque style, with a functional, no-nonsense, factual expression.

We chose Alliance No.2 Medium because it echoes the unique geometry of the logo. IBM Plex Sans was chosen as a complementary content font as it is functional, strong and open-source.

Sketched Out: Artistic Sketchbooks and Journals Unveiled offers an intimate dive into the personal pages of 55 artists from around the world. This book celebrates the raw essence of the creative process, revealed through sketchbooks and journals used for doodling, experimenting, or jotting down ideas. From Grace Helmer to Irene Saputra, Jill Senft, and Tom Froese, each artist unveils a part of their universe, with special contributions from Pavel Ripley and Takeuma enriching this fascinating collection. Readers are invited to discover the inspiration behind the final works and immerse themselves in the visual thoughts of these creators.

The cover of Sketched Out perfectly reflects this unfiltered creative process. Designed as a tribute to sketchbooks themselves, it features dynamic and varied artwork, mirroring the diversity of the creative minds within. Inferi, the captivating serif typeface by Matthieu Salvaggio from Blaze Type, gives a unique character to the title and section headings, highlighting the blend of chaos and structure inherent to the artists’ work. The typewriter typeface used for text, captions and page numbers is Pitch by Kris Sowersby of Klim Type Foundry. Victionary, the agency behind this project, captured the spontaneity and energy emanating from these sketchbooks while respecting the creative process of each contributor.

Good Dogs is a book about our “canine companions in art and illustration”. Publisher Victionary writes:

Our brand new release is packed with heart-warming illustrations that capture the delightful charm of our four-legged friends and is bound to cheer you up when you feel like the day has gone to the dogs.

The softcover publication has 304 pages measuring 60×205 mm and comes with a jacket in four variants. Harber by Benoît Bodhuin of bb-bureau is used for all display typography, supported by Aurèle Sack’s LL Brown (Lineto) for text.

Bringing together an East Asian drink with Western European Renaissance writing might appear audacious. But in fact it turns out to be an intercultural love match where “craftsmanship” is the core value.

Breathing Tea is a small business based in Hong Kong that fully focusses on producing all sorts of Kombucha tea. As of fall 2024 the firm is represented in six places across Hong Kong and offers an online shop. Name and website of the brand make it clear that the purpose of the enterprise is to offer mindfully handcrafted brews, following the centuries-old tradition.

And it is here where you can see how well the chosen typeface fits in: Francesco was designed by Franck Jalleau on the basis of early Italian Renaissance printing, especially from the presses of Aldus Manutius. The typeface’s name pays tribute to Francesco Griffo who was the punchcutter of Manutius and is seen as one of the central figures in transforming Humanist calligraphy into typography.

Instead of copy-pasting recurring elements of type design, like for instance the serifs, Franck Jalleau strived to emulate the spirit of early punchcutting craftsmanship and to individually balance each letter in its own right, leading to more variation in those details.

Yet Francesco is not a mere revival, but a contemporary take on the Renaissance topic. Most noticeable are certainly the filled black counters of a and e, a characteristic that makes the typeface recognizable and therefore suitable for identity projects. Francesco comes with a variety of stylistic alternates and also provides full Greek and Cyrillic character sets. It was published by Production Type in 2017.

That same year appeared the geometric Halcyon by Jonathan Gibson, the complementary face used on the website of Breathing Tea.

Francesco is used with ample letterspacing. In the logotype, the letter i is represented by the dot only. The compact logo version combines a single letter B (modified to have one open counter) with that floating dot.

Social media typography doesn’t have to be loud or sloppy: a customer testimonial is carefully set using Francesco in roman, italic and small caps, with a discretionary st ligature and hanging punctuation

Box set with two bottles of tea

Homepage

Flavor selection menu

Product page

Kombucha in the making

Raw Lily is a new e-commerce store based in Hong Kong, offering the highest quality wellness products. We were asked by the founder of Raw Lily to position and rebrand the wellness e-commerce business.

We chose Recoleta as brand font for its uniquely warm and playful character. It’s a typeface that doesn’t take itself too seriously. A ‘playful serif’! Recoleta was complemented with Mabry for body copy.

Faire Type’s Sprig and Sprig Sans in use for the new visual identity of The Shed.
Adam Studios writes:

We updated the visual identity of The Shed, a hands-on afterschool programme based in Hong Kong. In addition to establishing fonts, palette and guidelines, we also did the illustrations that represent the brand’s core tenet “Me, We, Us” that encourages children to attend to their needs, those of others and those of the planet. This branding process culminated in an update to The Shed’s website, the creation of new social and press templates, and the beginnings of The Shed’s product development phase.

This micro transistor radio was sold under a number of brand names including Arrow, Clairtone, and Printronic. Its origins go back to 1964 and the Sinclair Micromatic micro transistor radio.

This model, the Printronic IC-2000, is here shown in its original case with earphone. It was made In Hong Kong, ca. 1969. The logo is in caps from Countdown. The fonts used for the operation instructions include Univers Condensed (Selectric version?) and Cheltenham.

Exhibition Poster

The PolyU Design Show 理大設計展, an annual highlight event of the creative and innovative industries in Hong Kong, is organized by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design. From the Behance website where you can find their full visual identity design:

“Blazing boundaries
Need not be flat
Just like
A lone circle
Has its own strings.

Pitch black will converge
Expand through time
Engrave to reverberate.”

The exhibition features more than a hundred design projects created by students from the School of Design. Inspired by the concept of the growth of the universe as an analogy for the growth of our cohort of design students, this year's theme of the show is "Grow to Discover, Expand to Show".

As our journey comes to an end, what was once hidden in the dark has been illuminated. Through this journey, we have discovered our innate talents, interests, and skills, which have set us apart as individuals. Our vibrant individuality is something that continues to expand with time, leaving an indelible mark along the trail of our paths. As we move forward, we carry with us the memories of our growth and accomplishments, knowing that we are capable of achieving even greater things in the future.

The exhibition’s art direction, graphics, motion graphics and more are designed by Kiki Yip and Rico Yip; wayfinding and space design by Polar Hong and Jennifer Lee, and the publication (leaflet) was designed by by Kay Lee.

In addition, Kiki Yip did the custom Chinese title that was inspired by Jack Halten Fahnestock’s Tiny (available from Velvetyne Type Foundry). Other fonts include Aeonik Light from CoType Foundry, which is being used in posters, wayfinding, publications, and more, while M Ying Hei HK can be found in places where functional Chinese is needed.

The project was made by students from the BA (Hons) program at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), supervised by Roberto Vilchis Echeverri. Please visit the Behance presentation for the full visual identity design.

Outlined view of the progression to form the Chinese title “理大設計展” (PolyU Design Show)

Solid view of the progression

Entrance graphics

Opening ceremony

“23” visual identity logo embroidery on a T-shirt

Poster Details, printing effects

Invitation card

You/Dystopia investigates the theoretical link between artificial intelligence (A.I.) and identity. The project’s goal is to create an exaggerated, yet possible future, both utopia, and dystopia, to reconsider the possibilities of A.I., raise awareness of potential ethical issues arising from A.I, and reflect our current digital behavior and relationship with technology. Furthermore, the project emphasizes the importance of having protections in place to preserve our privacy and security. By doing so, we may assist in ensuring that the benefits of artificial intelligence are realized while avoiding a dystopian future.

The three main typefaces are NN Knit Grotesk by Rüdiger Schlömer, ABC Diatype by Dinamo and Proto Mono by Radinal Riki. Because the project is situated in a hypothetical future with the topic of a fictitious hospital. The fonts represent such basic, futuristic moods and tones, while typefaces like Knit Grotesk operate almost like LED pixels in a screen, where the screen may malfunction or break, displaying strips of horizontal lines adjacent to the screen, which also recall the technology part—A.I of the project.

The project was made in the Bachelor (Hons) program at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), supervised by Charis Poon.

The 9th Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture (UABB) was held September 20222 in Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The poster, catalogue and merchandise for this edition were designed by Hesign, a design studio by Jianping He, based in Berlin and Hong Kong.

English text is set in FT Kunst Grotesk, the typeface used for Chinese is not yet identified.

Everett and TWK Everett Mono by Nolan Paparelli and Suisse Works by Ian Party in use for NCDA, a Hong Kong based architecture and design studio specializing in residential, commercial and hospitality projects:

We cover the full design remit encompassing interiors, bespoke furniture and innovative products, through to graphic design and the development of exclusive brand narratives. We’re interested in developing creative projects that reinvent the experience of space through meaningful connections.

Website designed and built by Alex Hunting Studio.

BaseHall is a Hong Kong company dealing with food courts and event places. They opened two places in the city in 2022, the first one being in the basement of Jardine House – one of the city’s most famous office towers in the heart of corporate Central. Normally, when people talk about exciting food in Hong Kong, they’d most likely be thinking Soho. To convince people to go to this unexpected location for dinner, London agency Otherway created “a brand that would punch above its weight and stand out” (quoted from Otherway's website).

The brand personality was therefore built around a duality of ‘Playful food lover’ meets ‘Passionate food expert’ – allowing us to balance a fun-loving, messy and even cheeky tone, with expert knowledge and authentic storytelling.

BaseHall’s world is inspired by the visual wealth that Hong Kong provides. From the signage to the tactility of the photography, every instance has been designed with a care and attention to detail that pays homage to the rich and vibrant culture of the city.

Initially inspired by the traditional lightbox signage of Hong Kong, the design language is built on a grid system which visualises all the layers coming together to create a tapestry.

This tapestry is made up of a combination of bold, statement typography and rich, illustrated worlds.

To sport all the communication, Otherway created a customized version of Luke Prowse's NaN Fiasco. It hints at the distinctive circular windows of BaseHall’s original home, Jardine House. We can note that this modification brings Fiasco in the growing list of typefaces with perfectly circular countershapes that are being released since three years. (Ballpill, Reform, Gregram, ABC Maxi Round, Rauschen Max, etc.). To counter this customized Fiasco playfulness, Otherway makes a sporadic use of the lighter weights of NaN Tragedy for a more elegant and refined touch.

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