“How can typefaces be imbued with a sense of place? Brunswick Grotesque responds to the challenge of designing a typeface for a place, and is the product of a research project undertaken for a Master of Communication Design at RMIT University in 2017. The typeface was inspired by a casual typographic sensibility observed in Melbourne’s inner north suburbs. The grotesque comprises 5 distinct widths combined randomly by means of the Contextual Alternates feature. The result is a text setting which embraces hiccups, inconsistency, irreverence and naive charm. It’s a quality typical of Melbourne’s inner north – and suburban ‘featurism’ (Robin Boyd, 1960) more broadly. Further randomness is introduced via an ‘oops’ class of alternates, which appear at rare intervals to swap some letters for their similar inverted counterparts (eg. upside-down S, swapped M and W) – referencing the work of well-intentioned shopkeepers who take sign-making into their own hands.” [Dennis Grauel]