Plain Text is a printed publication for exploratory type design, edited and designed by Lucas Descroix and Benjamin Dumond, and published by type foundry Plain Form.
From fiction to theory, from mystical analyses to visual works, Plain Text aims at exploring typographic imaginaries, moving beyond a strictly historical and technical framework, with a taste for the unknown and the dormant potential of writing.
The third issue launched in March 2026 and includes contributions by Alex Balgiu, Eugénie Bidaut, Mathis Borel, Gabriele Čepulytė, Lucas Descroix, Johanna Drucker, Benjamin Dumond, Mankun Guo, Hélène Marian, Luther R Marsh, Ariel Martín Pérez, Laurent Mbaah, and Mălin Neamțu.
The texts of this black-and-white, bilingual publication are all set in the unreleased duo Basically Serif for the English and Basically Sans for the French. Additional information is set in Baskemo, also Serif and Sans, an automatically monospaced-and-skelefont’ed companion to Basically.
A number of display typefaces designed by Lucas Descroix and/or Benjamin Dumond are used throughout, for the title of each contribution as well as various emphasis moments. These include: Michaux, Nostra, Paraiso Sans, Jester (in several styles), Ready Active, and an early version of the upcoming Ferro. Some unreleased display typefaces, either old or future, are also used but not shown here in the pictures.
Several typefaces are also showcased as part of contributions by their respective designers (shown here are Bye Bye Binary’s BBB ReadMe and Mălin Neamțu’s Segmentor).
• English and French
• 80 pages, 210×297mm
• offset print on Munken Print White
• 750 copies, March 2026
• ISBN 978–2–9597254–3–2
This third issue of Plain Text was kindly supported by Abyme, Blaze Type, Dinamo, DJR, Klim Type Foundry, Rosetta, The Designers Foundry, and XYZ Type.