“States” is the third installment of NOIA magazine.

States are the conceptual and physical constructions of borders – however tenuous – to define ideas and purport control. They are artifices presented as logic, defended as truths, manipulated as oppressions.

From Magculture:

A self-identified ‘open and participatory’ publication, Noia offers a physical space for ‘creatives and thinkers to visually react to the complex problems of our contemporary times, both as individuals and as a society.’ Oh, and the name? It means ‘boredom’ in Italian.

The Sesc Dance Biennial 2023 brought together dance and performance works that deal with dissident bodies. Based on videos of these presentations, studies were carried out on the abstraction of movement and the mechanics of joints, which resulted in the choice of ABC Galapagos, designed by Johannes Breyer and Fabian Harb from Dinamo together with Felix Salut. The deconstruction of movements was reflected in the chromatic deconstruction of the use of the type in larger titles, posters and visual communication. The supporting typeface is GT America by Grilli Type (designed by Noël Leu with Seb McLauchlan).

Rethinking museum signage in the Covid-19 era

During the confinement we reflected on the role of public museums in the Covid-19 era, on how signage systems can question the meaning of social distancing, its connotations and the way bodies interact in public spaces. Based on this reflection, we have created a new signage system for CA2M, Second of May Art Centre Museum in Madrid.

Concerns
When designing the signage system, the Murray team tried to answer the following questions:
How can we design Covid-19 signage systems that question the meaning of social distancing, its connotations and the way in which bodies interact in public spaces?
How can we steer clear of the imperative tone and the omnipresent separating stripes we have got so used to over the last few months?
How can we generate a friendly, caring, navigable and playful place which also makes us think?

Concept design
The result of the new signage is a geometric modular system built with:
– two different fonts,
– two different materials,
– two axes of information: horizontal → walkthroughs; vertical → messages on paper.

The horizontal axis
The horizontal axis is created by a “playful game of open forms” that sets out the distance of 1.5 m, which also references the project set in place at CA2M during lockdown (#meterandahalf).

This geometric modular system is based on the glyphs of the two styles of ABC Galapagos (Dinamo), which “dismantled” in order to recompose a universe of forms and variations that outline paths, messages with guidelines for social distancing and a whole family of personalized icons.

The vertical axis
The second layer of communication comprises big messages on large format pieces of paper pasted over the museum’s vertical surfaces: columns, walls, staircases, etc.
For these large areas we opted for Plaak (205TF) because of its “elementary, clear and robust forms” which are then “softened” when applied in outline style.

The new signage system blends in seamlessly with the museum, creating a spatial language in the different walkthroughs which is not perceived as a barrier but helps to consolidate new perceptions and forms of relating with others, with the artworks and with the different spaces.

For more info, see the full case study (pdf, 21.8 MB).

No Rights Reserved is a museum catalogue design for a fictional Chinese contemporary appropriation art exhibition that locates at Tate Modern, London. It was made as a student project at ArtCenter College of Design.

In traditional Chinese calligraphy education, apprentices generally start from a facsimile. During the process of transposing previous works, apprentices sometimes create a better version, transcending its original form. The ancients attributed this transcendence to the "I" in the book. However, the booming development of Internet technology makes the access to artwork more convenient than ever, the difference between appropriating and copying has been blurred gradually. Taking a form of art and directly applying to the other becomes a new way of art making.

“No Rights Reserved” recreates a definition of the well-known phrase — “All Rights Reserved” as an conversation starter. The goal is not to criticize any form of art expression. It is intended to discuss: What is appropriation? What is plagiarism? Does the two have a border? If so, what is it?

In the first chapter of the book, I “copied” an exhibition catalogue as the starting point of my design. The catalogue recorded the art exhibition that took place in 105 Hudson Street, Manhattan, New York—the very first art exhibition to discuss “appropriation art.” Imagery was selected from the famous Shenzhen Dafen Oil Painting Village.

In the artist's title page, I merged and replaced the Chinese calligraphy grid with the Western font grid system. It is intended to indicate the clash between the East and the West’s different definition for plagiarism and copyright.

In order to express the discussion of copyright, the catalogue was printed and bound in China. After changing the layout a little and making a “copy” version of the catalog, a limited newsprint edition was produced in the United Kingdom (via the Newspaper club website). The catalogue hence exists both as hardback book and as a newspaper version.

The simplicity of the Chinese characters in Noto Sans balances with ABC Galapagos in a harmonious way. Combing a comparatively complex font with a font that has support for Chinese was a very interesting experience. The typographic palette is completed by Panama and LL Akkurat.

Exhibition poster

Cover (hardcover edition)

Back cover (hardcover edition)

Book interior (hardcover edition)

Newsprint edition

Flyers

Tote bag

All fonts look the same is an exhibition of 260 fonts, celebrating uniquely restricted shapes with an almost endless amount of variation. Letterforms follow years of collective ideas on what an A or a Z is. In order to function, an A must look like an A. They are limited by form, yet there are virtually unlimited forms.

The curated collection not only displays diversity within each letterform, but includes examples of both classic and contemporary fonts – showing that type design not only has a long history but also has validity as an ongoing practice. This ongoing practice coupled with the almost endless variations leaves open the possibility of a follow-up exhibition as type design continues to evolve with advances in technology.

Here, the role of the typographer can be compared to that of the modern curator. Both typographer and curator exist to honour the content with which they work, creating something fresh through their own vision. Just as the curator is nothing without the artist, the typographer is nothing without the type designer.

In viewing the type designers as exhibiting artists, all foundries and designers were contacted to obtain the correct permissions and licensing. As the type designers were situated worldwide, this aspect of the curation process turned All fonts look the same into an international celebration of type, as well as locally, giving type enthusiasts or otherwise a physical space to come together and share ideas.

The branding and presentation of the exhibition were deliberately kept monochrome and minimal in order to allow the multitude of fonts to speak for themselves. 260 posters were produced with the same layout, each with a different font to match the exhibited collection.

These posters were used as promotional material as well as printed on the reverse of each exhibition brochure as take-home print ephemera. Along with this, the cover of each brochure was set in one of 26 different fonts, ensuring that no two brochures were the same. Continuing this theme, the exhibition website changes its webfont every time the browser is refreshed. We used iconic examples of typeface classifications along with Whyte Inktrap by Dinamo as they gave it too us prior to its release. The website also includes an extensive index of every type designer or foundry as artists exhibited.

A selection of the 260 posters, using Atlantic, Galapagos, Frauen Roman, Times New Roman (find a cheat sheet with differences between Times and Times New Roman in the comments of this use with Times), National Compressed, Favorit, Van Dijk, Gosha Sans.

The website renders with headlines in a different font on refresh. The header type selection includes Times New Roman, Neue Helvetica, Hobo and Whyte Inktrap (not shown here).

A selection of posters, each starring a different typeface. From top to bottom:

Apple Chancery / Clairvaux / Joe182 / Stenciletta Left / Cabazon / Droulers;

HWT Mardell / Gosha Sans / National/ Arnold Böcklin / Frauen Roman / Grandmaster / Bluu;

Favorit / ... / Maelstrom / Mineral / Pareto Circular / Bell Centennial / Banco;

Founders Grotesk Mono / GT Sectra / ... / Sporting Grotesque / Syne Italic / ... / ABC Pareto Rectangular

A series of single glyph posters, alphabetically sorted. Those with extremely good eyes may discern:
Cloister Black, Briem Akademie, Knif Mono, Clifton, Neue Helvetica, Baskerville Old Style, Bada Boom, Solide Mirage, Continuo, Stanley, Feijoa, Domaine Display, Colonna, Arial, Suisse Int’l, Albertus, Amboy, Metric, Van Dijk, Narly, Rotis Sans, Usual, Panama, Roobert, Self Modern, Times, Bodoni, Avenir, Tenez, Trade Gothic, ZigZag, Bauhaus 93, Proxima Nova, Monarch, Salvaje Display, Garamond, Sabon, Financier Text, Futura, and Halyard Display.

PART – Practice for Architecture, Research and Theory is an architectural practice for experimental, digital and technological innovation research and implementation. On the occasion of PART winning the Young Architect's Prize, Estonian design studio AKU designed a book and a website presenting their projects to date.

Instead of software rendering, photographed models are used to depict the work. They are placed on a 3D grid, giving a sense of space and scale. Texts and informations are set in UCity, a geometric grotesque from Fatype, while Galapagos C, an experimental grid typeface from Dinamo with Felix Salut, serves the headlines.

The website (part.archi) follows the design concept with the content adapting to the 3D space in a surprising fashion, illustrating the very experimental approach of the architectural practice.

Magazine title set in SangBleu Empire, number in SangBleu Courtesan, subtitle in TheW Clan ODB and fine print in Suisse Int’l.

In the third issue of Type Life, Swiss Typefaces take a look beyond their own work and celebrate contemporary type made by others. The Swiss design studio compiled a selection of their favorite typefaces, licensed the fonts and used them to design a magazine. The resulting specimen of “Non-Swiss Typefaces We Like 1569–2018” comes with a text by Florian Hardwig (Fonts In Use) and is visually enriched with works by lettering artist Julien Priez (boogypaper).

Type Life 3 showcases 19 fonts from 19 international foundries: 29Letters, Adobe Type, Commercial Type, CSTM Fonts, Dinamo Typefaces, DSType, Extrabrut.Shop, Future Fonts, Hoefler & Co., Letters From Sweden, Linotype, Milieu Grotesque, Or Type, Production Type, Sharp Type, Sportsfonts.com, The Enschedé Font Foundry, Typotheque, and Velvetyne Typefoundry. The selection is a representative sample for the diversity in type design and gives an illuminating overview of the current scene. While the majority of the fonts was released in the past few years, many draw inspiration from all kinds of sources from previous eras. There is blackletter, script, slab serif, sans serif, and more. This – a stress on newness, historical references, and a vast stylistic plurality – reflects three major trends in today’s typography, as Florian Hardwig points out in his introduction. Other recurring themes that he identifies as being symptomatic for 2018 include highly conceptual projects and a quest for extreme aesthetics. At the same time there are functional fonts designed to solve specific problems. Just like the fonts, the type designers who created them have diverse backgrounds, in terms of geography, or how they entered the field. The represented distribution models range from traditional licensing to subscriptions, free and open-sourced fonts, as well as experimental or even unfinished releases.

Each issue of Type Life features a guest contributor. This time it’s the up-and-coming French lettering artist Julien Priez. A graduate of École Estienne, Paris, he’s a member of the international collective High on Type, best known for organizing the annual festival All Eyes on Type. Priez gives workshops at various schools and is an instructor at the prestigious TypeParis program. His work oscillates between the analog and the digital. Alphabets are first calligraphed, then cut in wood, and eventually digitized. Priez is just as comfortable painting meter-high letters with a triple brush on a wood fence as he is animating ornate pixel letters with kaleidoscopic patterns. Type Life #3 shows a range of his repertoire, starting with a still from his animated Nightmare Alphabet and two of his in-progress fonts Boogyroma and Boogylink on the cover. Mandinor Gothic is used to render the word “KING” on top of a kinetic gesture. The next page answers with “KONG”, in letterforms that pay homage to Jean Midolle’s Alphabet Lapidaire Monstre from 1835. With such historical references and the stunning stylistic versatility, Priez’ work is a perfect fit for the content of this issue.

At a whopping 40 pages, Type Life 3 is the most substantial issue so far. It’s printed in three Pantone spot colors plus silver and black, on two different paper stocks including transparent paper.

“Dream” set in Boogyroma and “Chasers” set in Boogylink, two in-progress typefaces by Julien Priez. Foundry names set in TheW Clan GZA by Swiss Typefaces. The caption that mentions the typefaces is set in Suisse Int’l Condensed.

Essay, set in SangBleu Republic (body text) and Suisse Int’l Mono (streamers, side notes). The green type on the left and at the very top of the right page is KOPYME As Uzual.

Galapagos (Felix Salut, Dinamo) and Xprmntal 01 (CSTM Fonts) visiting each other’s page. Typeface names (top) are in KRSNA. In the margins left and right, the foundry names are set in stacked letters from KOPYME (Swiss Typefaces).

Winner (Sportsfonts.com) × Quarto (Hoefler & Co.)

A pattern of Patron (Milieu Grotesque) with a guest appearance by Vincent (Letraset) is juxtaposed with a collage featuring elements from a Caslon Old Face specimen by H.W. Caslon & Co. from 1924.

On the left, a page from the book Il perfetto Scrittore Di M. Gio. Francesco Cresci, Italy, 16th century. On the right, (raster) pattern tiles are mixed with Frank Adebiaye’s Montchauve (Velvetyne).

Perfil (DSType) and Cardinal (Production Type). Cameo: Magnificat.

Julien Priez’ Mandinor Gothic in combination with his lettering.

Pattern by Julien Priez, printed in fluorescent and metallic ink.

Separat (Gunmad, OR Type) on the left, and Azal (Pascal Zoghbi, 29 Letters) as well as a tag lettering on the right hand.

Times Europa (Linotype) vs. Line (Letters from Sweden), with interventions by Good Vibrations and Block Up (Letraset).

Type that looks like it cannot be moved, and type that looks like it couldn’t sit still for a second: Berton Hasebe’s Styrene (Commercial Type) and Jérémy Landes’ Digestive (Triple Studio).

Thesaurus Display (Typotheque) × Respira Black (Sharp Type)

Feature page with Benoît Brun’s Shakotan (work in progress), printed in neon spot color.

On the left, a selection of A monograms (mostly dating back to the 15th and 16th century) shine through their overlying page with a big silver A set in Bram de Does’ Lexicon No. 2 (The Enschedé Font Foundry).

Pull quote in SangBleu Sunrise, printed in silver metallic ink.

Back cover with a sneak preview of the upcoming KOPYME and SuisseU.

Brian Piñeyro is a producer currently in NYC who is also known as DJ Wey, Luis, Deejay Xanax, or DJ Python. For his most recent release Dulce Compañia, distributed by Incienso, Brian explores the rhythms of house, reggaeton and ambient music.

The album art features Dinamo’s Galapagos in its Rounded-Straight style, labeled as Galapagos AB.

On the vinyl release the ‘ce’ ligature is no longer there and the kerning was changed quite a bit for the album’s name.