FEMME TYPE – IT’S MORE THAN WORDS

I love typography. Really, I do. From the range of emotions each different typeface can evoke down to the long history of type design. Type is a powerful and wonderful medium.

I wasn’t always this big a fan of type. When I first started learning about it in my studies, I found its past and the number of typefaces available to use daunting. But the more I read about it and discovered type designers, the more I realised that it really is beautiful.

Speaking of history, take Cooper Black, for example. Created in 1922 as a new addition to Cooper Old Style, it’s still as popular today as it was back then. You can see it being used for albums (like those below) as well as store fronts. It’s such a popular font that Easy Jet still uses it as their logo’s typeface to this day.

Through wanting to immerse myself more into this part of design, I discovered 36 Days of Type halfway through my studies. I participated in the challenge a year later and experimented with each letter and number; twisting, shrinking, stretching, exaggerating – you name it. I wanted to see how far I could push each one before it became totally illegible.

From there I found out about Femme Type. What is it? Well, it’s a platform created with the purpose of intensely celebrating the work of type designers and type-focused creatives who identify as women. Through them, I discovered even more type designers, amazing typefaces and projects from all around the world.

From the articles they’ve shared, the work they post on socials to the range of type artists I’ve discovered, it’s all reinforced the love I have for it all. I’ve been able to follow the works of Marie Boulanger, Jazlyn Fung, Kookie Santos, Martyna Wędzicka-Obuchowicz, Emily Jing Sum Chan, the French studio My name is Wendy and many more. It’s an inclusive and diverse design space to wander through and find other women who do great work.

(Femme Type even approached me and asked me to join their directory of amazing and talented designers!)

I’d encourage anyone to have a look at their website. No matter your background or profession, we can all enjoy the beauty of letters.