The program flyer for Reizende Leute, diese Boulingrins (es brennt) at RambaZamba Theater translates the escalating energy of the play by Georges Courteline into a strong graphic object. Courteline’s biting satire about a bourgeois couple in a permanent state of exception becomes, in this production, a physically present and exaggerated confrontation. Performed by the inclusive ensemble of RambaZamba Theater, consisting exclusively of actors with disabilities, the conflict gains a particular directness and intensity.

The flyer was designed by Stahl R, who are responsible for the theater’s visual communication. In its folded state, it functions as a compact program medium with clearly structured text blocks and a distinct hierarchy. Once unfolded, however, the object transforms. On the reverse side, a large scale poster motif appears.

The color scheme is radically reduced to red and black, with black printed on glossy red paper. This materiality enhances the visual impact and creates an almost alarming presence. A coarsely rasterized close up of a face dominates the surface and begins to flicker through its visible halftone dots.

For the typography, Reply by Approximate Type is used. The typeface appears compact yet expressive, with distinctive details that give the title a tense and independent character. Set in large scale and pushed across the image, the typography actively intervenes in the composition. It does not remain neutral but confidently asserts itself within the space.

The anthology Samtidens Idehistorie (“Contemporary History of Ideas”) was printed by Narayana Press and published by Baggrund in 2021. The design was created by Mathias Skafte, and the text was set in Reply by Approximate Type.

Identity and exhibition design for Kunstnerforbundet’s 2023 Christmas exhibition. Design and application by Parabol Studio, using the typeface Reply by Approximate Type.

Kunstnerforbundet (“artists’ association”) is an artist-run gallery in Oslo.

The visual identity for rSIM was designed by Studio Blackburn, using Reply by Approximate Type (@approx.type). Description from the studio’s website:

rSIM is the worlds first truly resilient SIM card. Resilience in technology is crucial for Security, Safety, Sales etc. We teamed up to help support rSIM’s mission and build a brand around the idea of being “Always On”.

Technology can sometimes be perceived as empty and soulless but as this is a truly intelligent SIM card we wanted to give the product real character and personality, running with a concept of “It’s Alive” for the branding—rSIM thinks, therefore it is!

The green was inspired by the On Buttons, Lights, Switches… that feature on a wide variety of technology. Through the use of expressive animations, bold typography, as well as bringing the SIM Card to life we created an identity to clearly stand out in a sterile B2B crowd.

The National Film School of Denmark is a state school located in Copenhagen. It has eight programs: documentary director, fiction director, animation director, producer, scriptwriter, cinematographer, sound editor, film editor, game developer. Lars von Trier and Susanne Bier are among the famous graduates.

Independent creative company Barkas (Denmark/Sweden) created the new visual identity for the school. The typeface used is Reply by Kasper Pyndt, a Danish graphic designer and founder of Approximate Type.

The identity is a colourful new direction, symbolising this diverse new era. It embraces flexibility with a bilingual modular system, providing endless compositions within one frame.

In the article for The Brand Identity, founder and creative director Mike Wittrup explains:

To accommodate this, the typographic direction was intentionally straightforward, for the sake of legibility and versatility. To keep things simple and easy to work with we use one typography and one weight.

Senior Designer Marie Dissing adds:

His minimalistic yet subtly detailed sans serif was the perfect choice to balance out the expressive colours, different styles of photography and edgy motion, and add a timeless modern feel to the identity.

Read the full article on The Brand Identity.

Description from the website of design studio Formal Settings:

The monograph for Cuban artist Miguel Alejandro Machado Suárez is printed with silkscreen on canvas cover and contrasted with orange edge color on the book block. The limited edition comes with an original artwork as well as a hand bound box with copper foil embossing.

The typeface is Reply by Approximate Type. The book was published by BODE Projects.

The world flames like a discokugel is a play written by Thomas Köck and Mateja Meded, and directed by Jacob Höhne. It will premiere on December 16, 2022, at Berlin’s RambaZamba Theater, in cooperation with Theater des Anthropozän and AnthropoScenes. The play is set on –

a planet Earth that aliens take possession of after humans have died out due to drought and water pollution. Even the Styx, the river of the dead, and its tributaries Kokytos and Lethe have dried up. The souls of the deceased can no longer cross over into the realm of the dead and accumulate in the form of spirits hoping for a cleansing flood.

The poster was designed by Stahl R, who are responsible for all of RambaZamba’s visual communication. For the title, they used PicNic. Drawn by Mariel Nils, PicNic was co-released by Velvetyne and NoFoundry in January 2022. Despite being out in the world only for a few months, it is already represented with seven examples on Fonts In Use. This may have to do with the fact that it comes for free, under the SIL Open Font License, but the nonchalant design also seems to have hit the zeitgeist. Velvetyne describes it as follows:

The shapes are inspired by the trajectory of a drop of water on an oilcloth, the shadows of the tree leaves on the fabric lying in the grass, the precise path that the ant takes to the watermelon. They attempt to translate the sensory experience of a picnic among friends.
This typeface will suit for all wild, poetic and bucolic explorers for their most adventurous excursions.

On this loud poster, the letters start to dance – not on a volcano, but under the titular mirror ball, a flaming world. They’re sizzling, blistering and deforming in the heat.

Design by Stahl R using photos by Phillip Zwanzig and Wolfgang Hasselmann