Thomas Bouville

1987, Thiais, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
Initially, I studied Graphic Design at the École supérieure d’arts appliqués of Bourgogne, and then at the École européenne supérieure d’art of Brittany. After that I chose to specialize in Typeface Design and decided to pursue my training at the École supérieure d’art et de design of Amiens and then in the Atelier national de recherche typographique (ANRT).

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
On one hand, I would say that I am attracted to projects which question the objectivity of the typographic form. Kai Bernau’s Neutral or Kris Sowersby’s Untitled highlight precisely one of the paradoxes of Typeface Design: the creation of a new form which appears to be “transparent”.
On the other hand, I have a real admiration for all of the typographic creations of the 18th century. I appreciate the typographic color of these transitional designs that I find to be very particular. Among the punch-cutters for whom I have a real admiration, I could mention Jacques-François Rosart, Philippe Grandjean, Joann Michael Fleischman and Pierre-Simon Fournier the younger.
As a graphic designer, I am also interested in more experimental projects which question the limits of the typographic sign by subjecting them to systems of construction. Karl Nawrot’s various experiments to do with the creation of normographs or the generative project Sign-generator by studio Norm are notable examples of this.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
Most of the time, I begin to design a typeface in the context of a Graphic Design project that I’m working on, where I haven’t been able to find what I’m looking for in existing type families. And so I create my own tools. As each project has a quite particular context, this naturally leads me to quite specific typographic forms.
In other cases, my Type Design projects begin with a concept for a family of typefaces. My attention is not necessarily focused on the design of a style, but more-so on the relationships that exist, and on the tensions that emerge from the confrontation of the latter within the same layout.
It is through the assertion of these relationships that, little by little, I manage to define my different designs.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
I am convinced that this is the case, as developments in technology and new uses of reading allow new needs to emerge. What’s more, the democratization of tools for creating typefaces leads new people – with different points of view – to tackle this design exercise. The possibility of being able to create a typeface relatively rapidly has changed its economy, and it is not rare to be in a position to create a customized font for a small scale graphic design project, whereas in the past this would have been quite an unrealistic endeavor.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
I don’t believe that there is any specific recipe to which I adhere.
Because, often, the need to create a new typeface arises in the context of the commission of a graphic design creation, it is in this back and forth between graphic language and type design that I feel most at ease.
What interests me most about type design corresponds to the creation of a particular optical appearance, of a reading experience in effect.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
I am quite sensitive to the modern history of typography, where typography moves away from notions of ductus and appears as a construction. This concept obviously evokes the typography of the early 20th century designed by the avant-gardes, however the relationship with characters created in the 18th century also interests me greatly. I like the contradiction which emanates from a construction of utopian letters, on principle outside of any scriptural tradition, and yet still part of the linear history of typography. The graphic impact which is generated by the brutality of these characters is of particular interest to me.
In the context of my previous commissioned projects, up to this point technology has served as a tool to develop and accompany my work. I have more of a tendency to exploit and develop more experimental tools in the context of my personal research. The research project Re-typographe, which I began at ANRT, in partnership with a team of researchers in the field of applied mathematics, is an example of this. We sought to develop a semi-automatic tool for analysis of ancient books. The observation of historical documents through the prism of technology allows me to look at canonic typographical forms from a different angle.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
The Kelvin family might appear atypical if one bases one’s point of view on the usual standards of development of contemporary typographical creations. The relationship that exists between the different styles of Kelvin is not a common one: it is not a question of variations of forms based on the same structure, but rather distinct designs which can only be considered to belong to the same family because they share similar values. It was then for me primordial to conserve the concept which serves as a basis for the construction of the Kelvin family, something that 205TF understood and supported.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Typeface Design is intimately connected to language, which gives it a particular status. A typographic character can invest any type of domain and any type of medium where there is a message that needs to be spread. But the creation of new typefaces was often connected to much more ambitious projects. For example, the creation of Romain du Roi, at the end of the 17th century, was part of an editorial project which described the arts and trades of that time. This typeface family reflected the ideological and technological achievement of the intentions carried by the publication.
On a much more modest level I would say that typography is an expressive tool of language. Used judiciously, it allows one to specify a discourse and to convey one’s intentions, thus allowing a more precise communication between emitter and receiver of a message.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
I work in different schools (Ésad — Reims, Ésaab — Nevers, Ésal — Épinal) in the form of workshops. Depending on the curriculum and its goals, I propose interventions in typeface design or graphic design. As quickly as possible, I create hybrid projects where the question of typography is dealt with both on the level of the sign and of composition.

What type design project are you currently working on?
My days alternate between macroscopic and microscopic tasks. I am currently woking on a family of typefaces for the visual identity of a museum in Paris, while at the same time continuing to work on graphic design projects. I also set aside some time to consider and think about new typeface design projects.

Juliette Collin

1991, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
After finishing my studies in Paris, I trained with Jean François Porchez, in order to concentrate mainly on typography and its applications. He taught me a very academic approach to type design and that was a real point of departure for me. Afterwards I decided to pursue my studies at the ECAL where I graduated in June 2017. While there I was lucky enough to be guided by renowned masters, such as François Rappo who taught me a lot and who helped me to have a keener eye, along with Kai Bernau and Matthieu Cortat.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
All of the different professionals whom I met during my time studying in Lausanne were a source of inspiration at one time or another. Whether in the fields of photography, graphic design, or more specifically typography. The ECAL is in effect a highly enriching context where different disciplines intersect and overlap. We are very lucky to receive advice and guidance from people who are passionate about the work, coming from very different backgrounds, who nourish our thinking and help us to develop our practice. In general, I would say that I have a strong interest in type designers who are also graphic designers, like Christian Schwartz, Laurenz Brunner and Radim Pesko.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
Typography is first and foremost a tool, with functionality and ergonomy being its two central pillars. Creating new typefaces allows new needs to be met, and allows us to provide our graphic design with a new identity. I don’t think that there is really any limit. I would even go so far as to say that it is important to develop one’s visual environment in line with one’s epoch. By renewing existing forms, one also renews the visual experience that reading can provide. Often, graphic designers know exactly what they are looking for but may sometimes opt for more intuitive choices.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
It’s true, there are already a lot of typefaces available. But designers manage to create something new while being inspired by ancient forms. There are so many possibilities, there is so much left to explore! The typographic landscape that many describe as saturated forces designers to propose coherent projects with strong identities.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
In recent years I have been working essentially on revivals. The difference between the very precise trace of ink left by lead characters on vectorial drawing paper implies a complete deconstruction of the typeface in order to extract its essence. So it is essential for me to always see the printed version of my typeface, and to correct it by hand. I also try to consider all of the possible solutions, without modifying the original idea. For the Salmanazar typeface, the question of making it smoother was at the core of my process. I worked on a lot of versions before returning to my initial drawings. Ultimately, I chose to leave it with quite a rough appearance, with all of its imperfections and subtleties so that it could retain its quite sculpted appearance, and so that it would have a “taste”, a tone of grey different to what one usually finds.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
Typography has its tradition, and always refers to a period of history. I believe that it is important to be aware of the context in which a typeface is created, to understand its origins and to attempt to know where its proportions come from, to understand the intentions behind it, etc. When one starts with an older model, one can find a wealth of information that will allow one to make one’s own interpretation. One discovers a multitude of subtleties that one might choose to emphasize, or not.
Digital tools are like any other tool. They allow for easy deconstruction and reconstruction, for the creation of variations – thanks to interpolations for example – to understand the impact of what one wishes to infuse them with. Today it is possible to “quickly” develop large families, even if I do think that it is more interesting to design and draw each style.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
The Salmanazar typeface possesses a very strong identity. I don’t think that it would be at home in every kind of foundry. 205TF brings together independent designers with very different practices, but at the same time it continues to be a small foundry with a very precise selection. I think that Salmanazar really suits the catalogue. I would even go so far as to say that the project has been inspired by a French historical model and that I am really quite happy that it is distributed in France.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
I’m probably going to disappoint you here. I’m sure of it. But I will say that it enables communication, and that’s already pretty good!

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
After my Master, the ECAL gave me the opportunity to do a six month residency in Hong Kong, where I gave conferences, organized workshops and worked with students in a design school. It was a very rich experience which allowed me to broaden my vision and to experience a new way of doing things, through the prism of the culture and heritage of a country. In addition to being very stimulating, it was a real challenge to teach as I had barely left school. I returned to France recently, and am certainly not objective enough, but what I can say is that sharing my experience and knowledge over there was a real pleasure.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on a customized version of a typeface for an Italian magazine that I started while still a student. Also I’ve taken charge of the development of an existing project. It is a little known Didot that proposes a particularly interesting version in terms of legibility.

Matthieu Cortat

1982, Delémont, Swiss

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practise?
During my studies in Visual Communication at the Ecal in Lausanne, I was introduced to typeface design by François Rappo, as well as in workshops with Norm and Underware. It was there that I was lucky enough to meet Hans-Jurg Hunziker who convinced me to persevere along this path, and who spoke to me of the Atelier National de Recherche Typographique, in Nancy, where I pursued my education. Once my studies were finished, I moved to Lyon, carrying out both my work as a typeface designer and as a mediator, then scientific advisor in the Museum of Print and Graphic Communication (Musée de l’Imprimerie et de la Communication graphique) in Lyon.

Is there something specific about your approach to typeface design?
Thanks to my work in the Museum of Print and Graphic Communication, most of my typefaces are anchored in history. This doesn't make them revivals however, as I take a lot of liberties with regard to the models from which I begin my work. Let's say that I try, for each creation, to bring a contemporary feel to an atmosphere, a style drawn from the history of Typography. Sometimes it is a matter of revisiting a classic; other times of rediscovering a lost typeface; often it is a nod to a reference.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
I don't really have any idols. I have a certain appetite for the British (Johnston, Gill and, slightly closer to home, Paul Barnes) and the French (Mandel, Mendoza, Jou) for questions of style. When it comes to questions of finishing and a certain rigour in development however, I am firmly on the side of the Swiss, Frutiger, Miedinger, the Optimo and Lineto foundries, for example. The American and Dutch typographers are somewhat a mystery to me. I would place myself nearer to typeface designers that are “sculptors” as opposed to “calligraphers”.

If you could only choose one typeface, which one would it be?
For what use exactly? Choosing a single typeface is like choosing a single food, a single garment. The choice of a typeface depends on the context. For a body text, let's say a book, I'd lean of course towards my last born, Helvetius, that will be soon available through 205tf.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
Ask fashion designers why they launch collections every season? Or car manufacturers why they release new models every year? Or furniture creators? Architects? Musicians?

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of type design?
No. In the sense that, a letter must, at a moment or another, be even just slightly legible. The reader must then be in a position to recognise it. And to recognise it, it has to resemble something that already exists. So then, to create something completely new, one would have to create a new writing.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
No, not really. It could be a question of historical models, intentionally badly scanned so that I can leave a lot of room for interpretation. Or, in the case of a commissioned typeface, a sketch provided by a graphic designer. More often than not, I scribble a few far from perfect sketches to clarify what I am looking for, and then design directly on a computer.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
I've already spoken about my relationship with history. I'm up to my neck in it. I know too much to just naively create fonts and imagine that they are revolutionary; and not enough to not get excited when I come across a specimen that I've never seen before.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
Beyond the shared infrastructure that allows a greater functionality that would be complicated to put in place for an isolated designer, there is the choice of the catalogue: few typefaces, but well chosen, with high standards, designs, spacings and kernings all being verified by a number of people.
While the “great foundries” have catalogues that seem to go on forever, and look like supermarkets, 205TF is a gourmet food store: a more refined choice, and filled with quality.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Let's not put that much weight on the shoulders of typography.

You teach at the ecal. Why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
What typeface designer doesn't want to see the general level of publications (on paper or screen) improved? And for that, people need to be trained, they need to have their minds opened and their vision educated. This requires time, patience and energy. Like all things that are worth doing.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I have never really been satisfied with the Gill and its different digital adaptations: too thin, too marked by their era; and, in general, by the humanistic lineals that are often too mannered. So I am working on a character in this style, with a very strong “bold” and sober italics.

Thierry Fétiveau

1987, La Roche-sur-Yon, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
I have been interested in calligraphy for a very long time, and practice it as an amateur. I began studying graphic design in Nantes where I had the opportunity to see the exhibition by the Type Directors Club and to attend the conferences that accompanied the event. I found Jean-François Porchez’s conference particularly striking as, at the time, I wasn’t really aware how important typography and the profession of type designer was. You could call it love at first sight really. In my final year, I did an internship with Typofonderie and my degree project was the creation of the Andersen typeface. This allowed me to combine my interest for typography, and my relationship with reading and teaching that I had experimented with as a primary school teacher. The project was quite well received, and led to me studying in the post graduate program, “Typographie et langage” at the ESAD in Amiens. I developed the Latin/Arabic typeface, Batutah.
Following that I worked as a freelance designer for a while and then in Lille with Ateliers 59, a studio that specializes in visual identity and signage. Currently, I live in Nantes where I work with the Collectif Sans Sherif as a freelance type designer and teacher.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
Many things inspire me. I follow the work of contemporary graphic designers like Kris Sowersby, Underware, Nikola Djurek, Kristyan Sarkis... I’m also have a strong interest for historical sources: specimens, posters, magazines… I’m interested in vernacular lettering, which I also collect. I always try to have one foot in the past and the other in the present.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
This questions comes up regularly with the people that I bump into who don’t work in the creative fields. I often answer with a different question: “Why create new clothes, new cars, new music?” For the same reasons: because people’s tastes evolve over time, according to geographical locations and trends. Software and Opentype code allow us to do things that were previously impossible, such as the principle of interpolation. New needs also arise and new uses appear. There is also the development of systems of writing other than Latin, such as Cyrillic, Arabic and Hebrew and Devanagari which all possess great potential.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
If that wasn’t the case I wouldn’t be involved in this profession! Yes, it is possible to create new typographic forms. Indeed this is where the interest of the profession lies: managing to create new forms while at the same time taking into account a certain tradition, proportions, reading habits and the presence of typefaces which already possess striking and innovative qualities.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
When I start designing a new typeface – whether it be a “retail” project, or even a “custom” one – I set out a brief containing the project expectations at the very start: number of thicknesses or weights, set of characters, functions, uses, styles, universes, references… The more detailed this brief is, the easier it is for me to know where I’m headed. This is followed by a phase of research with drawing and then, quite quickly, I begin using software to design a couple of glyphs. In my case I use the word “vaphosie” which doesn’t mean anything but which is useful as it provides the key characteristics which will help me to develop the rest of the alphabet. I do a number of tests, advancing in steps, and once I feel that the design is stable I develop the whole typeface.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
Whether we like it or not, typography originates in a context, in a specific period and this is also the case with very contemporary typefaces. For me, the history of typography is important as it allows us to understand the origin of the forms, and it is also a huge source of inspiration. It is also difficult to avoid technology that allows one to work in a more rapid and efficient way. The technological aspect of our professions develops quickly. This is one aspect of the profession which stimulates me.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
I have followed the evolution of 205TF since its creation and was already well aware of the work of Bureau 205 and their strong interest for typography. I was already convinced of the high quality and serious nature of the project. My first typeface, Lewis is distributed on Myfonts who are simply distributors. I was looking for a structure which chose quality typefaces and which worked closely with creators. 205TF is a great fit.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Absolutely! As a wise man once said: no typography, no salvation! On a more serious note, while it may not save the world, typography can, at its level, attempt to improve things a little. For example, the Balkan Sans typeface is composed on two levels, an upper one and a lower one, simultaneously presenting Latin and Cyrillic letters in an attempt to reconcile a Serbian population that has diverse influences running through it. Eco-font consumes less ink thanks to the empty areas inside the lines of the letters. The Homeless project fonts propose typefaces that are inspired by writing done by homeless people, and the proceeds from the sale of this typeface go to an association which works with homeless people. Beyond these projects, the development of typefaces or systems of writing that are in the danger of disappearing seems of primary importance to me as this helps the survival and transmission of languages.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
I work in the ECV Nantes and at E-Art Sup Nantes. In addition to that, I animate workshops and conferences. This role of transmission seems important to me as typography is a discipline that students – and thus future professionals – will be faced with on a daily basis whether it be for print of digital media. I try to pass on to students not only my know-how in relation to typeface design but also my knowledge of other subjects like the Opentype functions or how user licenses for typefaces function for example.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on a number of projects: the development of the Latin/Arabic typeface Batutah that I created when I was a student, the development of a lineal in a number of thicknesses for the Latin and the Cyrillic and finally a commission for a festival: a titling typeface inspired by the Art Deco movement.

Damien Gautier

1971, Beaune, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practise?
I fell into typography when I was already grown up, having finished some training in the field of science, a little by accident, by love... I studied in the typeface creation studio in the Estienne school, run by Franck Jalleau and Michel Derre among others.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
I like to take characters that have been drawn or designed by non-specialists as a source of inspiration. I pay particular attention to vernacular typographic signs that we all come across daily but don't really take in on any conscious level. They are often awkward, but can sometimes display real ingenuity.
Gerard Unger's characters were a real revelation for me when I began. With the Swift I discovered a design driven by an approach that allowed one to achieve radical characters, rid of any useless frills. With his other characters, I realised that history and contemporary creation could go hand in hand

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
I'll answer your question with one of my own! What is the point of a designer creating another model of chair? It will have a seat, four legs and a back like every other chair before it, and yet it is hard for you to imagine having four chairs in your dining room that clash with the rest of your home.
It is exactly the same thing when it comes to typeface design. Sometimes you feel the need for a specific character that is perfectly adapted to your needs or desires! So you design and draw it!

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of type design?
I never think in those terms when I draw and design a character. I draw the character that I need in my role as a Graphic Designer. Then, I imagine that if I find it suitable (because I always use my typefaces before making them commercially available), it could also be of interest to other designers.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
That depends. Sometimes I start work on a new typeface because I need it for a specific project. Its design is then driven by the use that will be made of it. I work constantly until I can make the first tests and then verify the result. I rework the design until I obtain a result that satisfies me. At other times, I feel the need to start a new project having discovered a typographic sign that inspires me and gives me a glimpse of a potentially interesting character.
At that moment, I draw my first signs. I look for a logic of forms and I am attentive to each sign. I often need time to do this and come back to the work at different moments. So, with that in mind, I am usually working on a number of characters at the same time. Sometimes I give up. However, once I am convinced by my design of the letter a, nothing can stop me!

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
History and technology are inseparable. Though the creation of a digital typeface is currently quite a technical endeavour, typeface design can not be done without a careful look at earlier forms. Typeface design is far from being the simple result of a technical process. It must be inspired!

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
Because I absolutely believe in the efficiency of a stringent distribution and prefer that my typefaces be part of a thoughtful selection rather than finding themselves lost among thousands of other typefaces.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
If we consider that typography is people speaking, exchanging and working together, then yes I dream that it can at the very least make the world a better place.

You teach at l'école des Beaux-Arts de Lyon. Why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
The apprenticeship of type design has brought me a lot in terms of my practise as a designer. I like the idea that the time dedicated to teaching can help students in their future practise by giving them a greater visual acuity with regard to the forms that they are handling. Also, teaching, allows one to move away from the commission/ project rhythm, and to step back from a pace that can sometimes be alienating, while discovering emerging personalities and universes in the process of becoming, and by helping them to structure their projects.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I really like long projects! So I have been working with the Plaak typeface, adding lower case letters to it. With its 24 styles I have my work cut out for me! I am also continuing my thinking on the numerous family of Maax. After the Maax, Maax Mono and Maax Rounded, soon the Maax Raw, a raw lineal in three styles.

Thomas Huot-Marchand

1977, Dôle, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practise?
I was a student at the School of Fine Arts of Besançon, where I discovered typography. I was self taught when it came to typeface design, using Fontographer, I threw myself into the design of Garaje, a typeface that I presented for my Fine Arts diploma. At that time it was a family of twenty or so fonts, that nourished my thinking around the geometrisation of the typographic sign, in vernacular inscriptions and in the European avant-gardes. Just after that I entered the ANRT, in 2001 – 2002, where I could dive fully into typeface design, by drawing and designing the lowercase M, a character for very small type sizes.

Is there something specific about your approach to typeface design?
A number of things are very important to me. To never move too far away from Graphic Design and to never lose sight of the way that typefaces are used: my activity as a designer provides me with a lot of pretexts to create characters, whether I am requested to do so or not. It is a way for me to appropriate the commission, and to add an element of typographic investigation to it.
As to the design itself, there are probably forms that we find from one character to another: nonetheless, I enjoy trying a new ways of designing for each character: not only another formal register, but testing another process. This is what stimulates me most.

What are your influences? The references and typeface designers whose work you particularly appreciate?
Graphic Designers have certainly marked me the most (like Experimental Jetset, Norm); when it comes to typeface designers, I admire the variety of drawings and designs of Carter or Frutiger, and the creations of Henrik Kuebel, for example.

If you had to choose only one typeface, which one would it be?
That's an extremely difficult question, and life would be incredibly sad with only one single typeface. If I had to give an answer I'd go with Akzidenz Grotesk Bold, old school.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
Do we ask this question when speaking of painting or photography? There are indeed quite a few in existence, but I don't believe that any limit exists.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of type design?
Of course, there are so many things to explore, everywhere: in history, technology, the writings of the world...

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
I try to avoid following the same recipe each time, and adapt my methodology to the character that I intend to develop.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
I am nourished, like most of us, by historical forms, but I try not to dive too deeply into them as it can very quickly have a paralysing effect. To quote Carter, I try to look at history for what it can nourish in the present and not for nostalgic reasons. As for technology, I am very interested in it: excellent tools are available to us today, and we have a relatively unprecedented capacity to adapt those tools to our needs. I am not a beast when it comes to development, far from it, but the whole field interests me greatly. Here too, as with history, we have to be careful not to confuse the means with the ends.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
I have always worked independently, and even if I had been in possession of a foundry since 2007, the distribution of my characters has never been of interest to me, and I have no time to take care of it anyway. My friendship with the people behind the project, and the format that 205TF proposes suits me perfectly, I didn't hesitate for a second.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Absolutely.

You teach at l'ANRT (Atelier national de recherche typographique, Nancy). Why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
I have always been a full time teacher, and I find it very important for my own equilibrium. I like interacting with students, working with my colleagues, organising things and doing research. These different activities (type design, Graphic Design, teaching) complement and nourish one another and I find this very stimulating.

What type design project are you currently working on?
A custom typeface for a huge hotel in Las Vegas that was commissioned by an agency. Class, American style! Its a glyphic serif; I've never designed one before and it's been very pleasant so far.

Fátima Lázaro

1986, Oaxaca, Mexico

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
I discovered notions of design, forms and space after obtaining a Baccalauréat in Physics and mathematics, specializing in Architectural Design, in my home town of Oaxaca. Pursuing my academic career in design I moved to Mexico city where I studied Graphic Communication Design at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana. This is where I established my first real approach to typography through its applications in editorial design. This then led me to text layout and micro- and macrotypography.
After my studies I quickly embarked on a professional career. It was while working as a graphic designer, particularly my few years in publishing and visual identity, that my interest for typography and type design was confirmed. I became aware of typography’s fundamental role in graphic design, and the possibility of developing my own typefaces.
During a trip to Paris (France) to learn French in 2015 I discovered the Typographie & Langage (EsadType) post graduate course in Amiens. There I studied type design alongside talented teachers and professionals and I feel very lucky to have had this opportunity. I graduated in 2018, presenting Cardone, a type family that I had designed to be used in editorial design.
Since then I have divided my time between collaborating with different companies, foundries and type designers and my own typographic practice, heavily influenced by graphic design.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
I am heavily influenced by the major trends in graphic design, but also by industrial design, art, architecture, pop culture and music. For a time I was for example fascinated by a certain modern and experimental aesthetic. Observing and rubbing shoulders with all of these disciplines continues to inspire and motivate my research.
During my studies, through practice and observation, my centers of interest became more precise. Nowadays I particularly appreciate the aesthetic of Dutch design that I was able to discover thanks to Charles Enschedé’s book Typefoundries in the Netherlands. I am also fascinated by trying to understand the creative process (and practices) of type designers such as William Addison Dwiggins, Gerard Unger and Ladislas Mandel whose forms and approaches, whose mastery and enthusiastic practices I appreciate greatly. I also really like the work of contemporary type designers such as Sandrine Nugue and Miguel Reyes, and admire their unexpected and refreshing formal audacity.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
For me typography is a discipline like art or fashion design that, guided by the use of new tools and new technologies, participates to a large extent in defining the soul of an epoch. Typography is animated by various considerations (beauty, singularity, utility, legibility, contemporaneity, etc.) and this allows us to say that, more than a system of rules and structures established to respond to fundamental needs, the creation and design of a new typeface enables us to respond to a particular set of requirements at a given moment.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
I don’t think that we can completely avoid the things that influence our way of designing, thinking or creating in various ways. I think that this is a challenge and that it constitutes one of the principle motivations of a type designer. Designers try to detach themselves from their references while managing to respond to the different needs and contexts that they are faced with.
I also think that typography allows for an infinite exploration of possibilities that allows one to envisage endlessly renewable forms.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
Over the last few years I have been looking to improve my creative process and to continue to learn. For each project I particularly appreciate the first steps that consist of understanding the context, needs and constraints and then of freely exploring the possibilities.
This also depends on whether I am working on a personal project or on a commission with a pre-established brief, as the time that has been allocated has a significant impact on the process. This may or may not allow me to envisage multiple possibilities before choosing a direction for the work.
When it comes to working on my personal projects these first steps are based on extensive research and a number of spontaneous and varied sketches. Once I have established the direction for the work I quickly move to digital drawing.
However, with the Cardone typeface I learned the importance of regularly testing and printing my work. This is one of the steps that I enjoy most and one that allows me to precisely define what I am looking for in terms of the type color, the rhythm, the contrast, the essence. It helps me to visualize the use that could be made of a typeface whose contours I am in the process of defining.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
I am nourished by both. Historical research along with the use of constantly evolving digital tools allow me to understand and respond to issues linked to the use of typography. Cardone, for example, belongs to a certain tradition because of its particular historical references. The main challenge was to appropriate them so as to then detach myself from them.
The search for a contemporary aesthetic combined with a desire to respond to the constraints of legibility of text typefaces, requires achieving a complex and highly instructive balance.
I really like the developments in technology that we have seen in recent years. I think that this has contributed to the fact that an increasing number of people are becoming interested in typography. At the same time I don’t think that the power associated with this technology in any way determines either the creative process or the result. I think that it allows us to work as a “team”, by associating the particular skills of other type designers.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
Cardone emerged from an experience completely infused with French know-how as my training in type design began in France.
When I discovered the 205TF foundry, having previously worked with the team behind the project, the choice seemed obvious to me. The pertinence of 205TF’s selections and its position as an independent French foundry was justification enough for proposing my typeface for its catalogue. What’s more, I am delighted that Cardone sits alongside other designs by contemporary designers that I particularly admire and from whom have I have learned so much.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
I like to think that, as Emil Ruder wrote, typography has the duty to convey information in writing. This is probably overly succinct but I do actually think that typography is the cornerstone of communication, and that thanks to its links with other disciplines it definitely continues to make our world more bearable and more exciting.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
After leaving school I focused on enriching my own creative process, trying to take advantage of, integrate and build upon each of my experiences. Nevertheless, on the few occasions where I had the opportunity to run a workshop, a lecture or a type crit, and for each collaboration that I am involved in, my main motivation is to convey my passion and my enthusiasm for endlessly exploring typography and its fundamental role in graphic design. I believe that constant exchange, interaction and curiosity nourish and stimulate. I would of course really love to teach in Mexico, my native country, and that would be a wonderful challenge.

What type design project are you currently working on?
At the moment I divide my time between collaborating with other type designers and foundries and a specific typeface project for the creative cycling project NVAYRK (Nueva York in Spanish) that I am part of and that I have been collaborating with since its creation in 2015.

Clément Le Tulle-Neyret

1986, Lyon, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
For as long as I can remember, the form of letters and their visual understanding has always been a cornerstone of my education and my practice. I graduated from the lycée Auguste Renoir, where I learned page layout by hand, with a two year technical degree as a draughtsman and layout artist in 2004. We had to design documents and double page spreads for books and posters, reproducing all of the content, both iconographic and textual, by hand. For example, we had to stimulate the bulk and type color of the blocks of text with Tria felt tip pens that were lighter or darker depending on the subject. Pursuing this path, I continued my studies at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts of Lyon, graduating in 2011, where I learned to work with digital typefaces and where my interest for editorial design was confirmed. Then in 2016, it seemed logical to me to apply to the Atelier national de recherche typographique, which I joined in October of that year, in order to learn how to design typefaces, the idea being to embark on a deeper exploration of my infraordinary practice as a Graphic Designer.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
The work of Matthew Carter interests me greatly on a number of levels, notably because he experienced all of the steps in the history of typography, and the different techniques of the design and production of typefaces, from lead to light and then digital, and this brings incredible depth to his work. I am impressed by the precision of his design: his line is clear and precise, similar to the gesture of a sculptor. The work of Fred Smeijers also speaks to me for its sense of rereading history, that of Kris Sowersby for his way of conceptualizing a project, the work of Laurenz Brunner for its freedom and its experimentation, and finally the work of Australian Vincent Chan for the diversity of the forms that he designs.
I also have a lot of interest for domains quite far removed from typography, such as literature, occult sciences, psychology and astronomy, as much to nourish my practice as to gain some distance from it, so that my designs are not only a consideration of typefaces for typographers.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
I don’t look at type design through the lens of utility but rather through that of desire. For me, I design what I want to see, no doubt in reaction to things that I don’t want to see or that I wouldn’t know how to use.
One of the analogies that I find most telling is that of designing chairs. The structure is rarely renewed, but there are always new needs: technical, aesthetic, conceptual...

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
I don’t think that it is possible to create something totally new from a structural point of view, given that the forms of letters haven’t evolved for quite some time now, and one must conserve this structure if one wants the letters to be comprehensible. However, I think that it is possible to engage in a broad exploration of diverse terrains through the conceptualization of type designs, which is what I am trying to do with the Immortel project.
Today I look at the work of type design similar to how American composer William Basinski approaches his Disintegration Loops: they are basically loops of music stored on magnetic tape that he wished to preserve by making digital recordings of them. Every time the tape passes the read head it is damaged and the sound altered, which gives each loop a different grain, a different texture to the one that came before. Each loop is unique without being radically different to the others.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
My approach is totally empirical and my reasons for beginning a new typeface vary greatly. For example, one of the reasons behind the design of Immortel Infra came from a longstanding interest for the Galliard, Plantin and Lyon typefaces. Having worked with these typefaces on different projects, I realized that none of the three truly incarnated what I was looking for when using typefaces descended from those of the French Renaissance, forms that were present enough to be visible but sufficiently discreet to go unnoticed. The need for this type design arose from the desire to develop a personal version of Robert Granjon’s Gros Cicéro, engraved in 1569, which influenced the three typefaces previously mentioned.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
A knowledge of the history of type design is certainly the most important thing when one decides to engage in the design of typefaces, as it helps us to understand what we do, to position ourselves and affirm a direction; I took advantage of my time at the ANRT to deepen my knowledge of typography and history.
My relationship with technology is slightly different. Though it is important to know how to handle the tools that one chooses, so as not to be held back by them, I have no interest in being the biggest nerd possible; I simply wish to understand what I am using and why I am using it as a function of my needs.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
205TF’s openness to experimental projects seemed appropriate to me for the Immortel project as it is a quite particular design. It is at the same time a classic exercise of revival, of exploring the architecture of a type family, and an approach to the formal incarnation of a very ancient theory light years away from type design.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
I have an ambivalent stance on the question. In 2006 type designer Peter Biľak wrote in the first issue of the magazine Marie-Louise: “We type designers might be convinced that our profession is vital to society, but we wouldn’t risk going on strike to test how indispensable we really are.” From this point of view, to which I adhere, I place type design on the same level as all other artistic creation. I don’t know if it can save the world, but it does make it richer, more tolerable, deeper. To quote the words of artist Robert Filliou: “Art is what makes life more interesting than art”.
Nevertheless, as letters represent the smallest unit of communication, it is hard to underestimate their role in the development of societies.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
I taught editorial design at the École européenne supérieure de l’image of Poitiers for 3 years. I taught page layout to art students, so that they could use it for the graphic and editorial design of their dissertations, but also to provide them with a sufficient enough base to design the documents that artists need all throughout their careers: presentation documents for applying for projects, for residencies, etc. I took a technical (learning the basics of InDesign and Photoshop), historical (the history of typography) and conceptual (what is the most pertinent form that can be used to deploy their dissertation in an editorial form?) approach to transmission. I teach Glyphs typeface design software, its history and its implications. I also animate workshops in editorial design and type design in various schools. These experiences are extremely enriching as I find that I learn just as much as the people that I am teaching. I have never questioned or challenged the role of transmission of knowledge as it has always been present, and is an essential factor in the development of human beings and society. By teaching it I make a humble contribution to its development.

What type design project are you currently working on?
After five years of intense work and research on the Immortel project, I need to work on something lighter. I am currently working on around ten typefaces, and I allow myself to move forward, or not, depending on the historical and formal depth that they might provide but also depending on the interest shown by my fellow Graphic Designers.

Yoann Minet

1988, Tulle, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
I designed a typeface for the first time in 2010, during an exchange with the University of Laval in Quebec. My timetable gave me the time to develop a project under the watchful eye of René Lemieux, Director of the Graphic Communication programme. Then, to quickly summarise my path, I studied at the École de communication visuelle of Bordeaux, then at the Typographic creation studio in the École Estienne; I worked at the Typography Cabinet with Ludovic Balland; in the Production Type foundry, founded by Jean-Baptiste Levée; then finally in 2015, I created a Graphic Design studio, Bureau Brut, with Julia Joffre and Camille Prandi. I also think that certain encounters have been very important in my training, I'm thinking of Hugo Anglade, Nicolas Oulès, Simon Masse and many others.

Is there something specific about your approach to typeface design?
I am not totally convinced that there is, because I don't have only one approach. Effectively, my approach varies according to the projects, the commissions, or just because I saw something in a street one morning. I think that the best way to renew one's practice is not to restrict oneself to a type of form or indeed to search for the perfect form. I consider that a drawing or design done at a particular moment represents that moment, and if I work on it again a month later I'll end up taking it in a different direction. This allows me to have an open mind with regard to my approach to typeface design.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
The very first book that helped me to discover Typography was Fonts & Logo by Doyald Young. The author analyses the Sabon, a typeface that has remained one of my references for a very long time. The work of Roger Excoffon and the Olive foundry constantly comes to mind, I feel very close to his approach and his forms. But I also think that for me the most important influences come from encounters.

If you could only choose one typeface, which one would it be?
Such a choice seems impossible to me, a typeface in itself is not a big deal, it is the use that turns it into a finished object. But, if I absolutely had to choose, I would take the Vendôme from the Olive foundry because it continues to delight me, in its design, its details, its grey, its rhythm.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of type design?
Typography is a game with rules and conventions. There is no absolute form, only canons established over time and the importance of their uses. As a designer I always try to position myself with regard to these conventions and these canons, to upset them, to go beyond them and to develop them.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
One must really find the “right music”. Afterwards I draw without references, without models because I prefer to trust what I have in mind, the forms that I have remembered. I only document my work once the project has been started. This allows me to analyse and understand what is intuitive and what is referring to something else.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with
technology?
I think that it is important to know the major events in the history of typography to be able to understand certain forms and certain movements, but I am not a specialist or historian. I am closer to the amateur, the observer. It is also important to master one's tool (drawing) to avoid being “dominated” by it.

Nonetheless, I pay very close attention so that history and technology don't become a vector for creation as such. The technical challenge can be stimulating and attractive but it shouldn't overpower the design itself. In other words I attempt to be as accurate as possible with regard to commissions or particular uses.

Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
The quality of the publications made by bureau 205 can only be a sign of good things to come for 205TF. I am certain that my typefaces are in good hands. What's more, there is an important panel of creators that are embarking on this adventure, and so it is an honour for me to count myself among this gathering of French contemporary creators.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
In as much that music can't save the world but can make it less grim.

Sandrine Nugue

1985, Lyon, France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
In 2011 I was preparing my degree in graphic design in the école des arts décoratifs de Strasbourg (which has since become the Haute école d’art du Rhin). I had developed a passion for the mechanics of reading thanks to research done by Stanislas Dehaene. Discovering the developments and transformations of our system of reading and writing led me to design a first typeface for use in film subtitles. At the time I was totally self taught. By a stroke of luck, Barbara Dennys was president of the panel who judged my degree. This led to my participation in the “Typographie & Langage” post-graduate program at the Ésad in Amiens where I was delighted to learn how to design typefaces. Ganeau, a family of latins designed in various optical sizes, is the result of that month of learning. I have been working as a freelance graphic and type designer, two disciplines which are closely connected in my practice, since 2013. My strong interest for systems of writing took shape while I was working on Infini, a free to use typeface family which I designed for the Cnap in 2014.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
During my time as a post-graduate student I was attracted to the generous typographic forms of Roger Excoffon, José Mendoza y Almeida and Ladislas Mandel (my teacher, Sébastien Morlighem played a vital role in my discovery of these three designers). At the same time, I am fascinated by very straightforward, very terse designs, similar to the typefaces of Rudolf Koch, or Berthold Wolpe with his Albertus or even Louis Oppenheim with Fanfare, and of course Vendôme by François Ganeau.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
When responding to a graphic design commission, I do my best to design a typeface which is made to measure, whether it be for a visual identity, for signage or a logotype… Typeface design is a means which allows one to accurately respond to the needs of the commission. They are tools that I design and the notion of “made to measure” is very important to me. I try to be as precise as possible and typefaces contribute to this. Each project is specific in nature and may require its own character.

Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
This is one of the main motivating factors in type design, how to juggle the existing with the new. Clearly we are not starting from scratch. Forms which influence matters of legibility exist, each medium and use come with their own set of restrictions. To this can be added our stylistic references. I try not to look too much at my preferred typefaces out of a fear that I might try to redesign them, I keep my distance from them so as to avoid copying them.
What I love more than anything else about typeface design is the question of nuances. Tiny modifications can totally transform a text and the possibilities are endless!

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
When beginning too design a typeface, I pay close attention to the commission while analyzing its context. Then I seek to formalize all of this through new forms – those most adapted to each project – rather than beginning with an existing typeface. The first steps are always drawn by hand and then quickly digitized. I like taking my time when doing research and testing, but sometimes a sense of urgency does give rise to interesting surprises.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
A knowledge of the history of typography seems essential to me for both understanding the typefaces which surround us and for creating new ones. History is a source of inspiration and provides a base which allows me to create a framework. It also allows me to play with appropriate references. I am currently questioning type classification by developing a typeface intended to be unclassifiable, which will at the very least represent the intersection of a number of references.
Technology has developed greatly in recent decades. We are lucky because it allows us to be both efficient and productive. I try to consider it as being helpful, and it is indeed precious, while at the same time keeping it at arm’s length in order to avoid it structuring my projects. It is, first and foremost, a tool in the service of design.


Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
From my time as a student, I have followed and admired the designs produced by Bureau 205. In their capacity as graphic designers they have a healthy awareness of the needs and desires of their fellow graphic designers. By opening the 205TF type foundry, they are daring to propose a catalog which is quite unlike anything found in the more traditional models. Various different kinds of typefaces can find a home. Injurial for example, a display typeface composed solely of capitals.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Typography is a tool for communication that can help people to gain a better understanding of the world. A sufficiently admirable vocation for its frail shoulders.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
I have been teaching, regularly or occasionally, in various different schools at different levels for around five years now. I also run workshops for children and provide training for graphic designers. Thanks to these different activities I can share and transmit my passion for typography and type design, and also introduce people to the major issues in the field today. I am constantly concerned with questions of transmission and discovery. I do my best not to approach things in a traditional way, and often I use play in my work. If one does not take pleasure in one is doing, one cannot learn.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I am currently designing a type family for the université de Sciences-Po Saint-Germain-en-Laye. They have also asked me to design their visual identity.

Tassiana Nuñez Costa

1983, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practice?
I grew up in a bilingual family in Rio, Brazil, and was very much influenced by my mother who was a linguist. It’s pretty clear to me that my taste for typography comes first and foremost from my love for languages. Later on I studied design and visual communication at university. It was there that I discovered typography as the graphic expression of language.

I decided to move to Paris in 2008 to continue my studies at the ENSCI - Les Ateliers as part of a master’s program in creation and contemporary technologies. My master’s project dealt with augmented reading, which allowed me to collaborate with various Service Design startups and to specialize in reading interfaces. It was while working with the layout of digital text that I was struck by a desire to acquire a deeper knowledge of typography and, more specifically, type design for the screen.

This interest led me to begin a typeface design project as part of the Typography and Language post graduate program in the Esad of Amiens that I concluded in 2015 with the beginnings of Thelo, a type family that explores the idea of optical sizes for the screen.
Since finishing the post graduate course I have continued my work in Service Design for businesses while simultaneously working on my personal projects around typography. I consider them to be two passionate and complementary approaches to design.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
I have noticed that I am often visually attracted to typefaces created by Dutch designers. I can’t really put my finger on exactly why, but I believe that there is something a little offbeat, a little unconventional and at the same time very effective in the Dutch aesthetic that appeals to me. For example it was love at first sight when I discovered the work of Bram de Does, and I was lucky enough to be able to consult the original drawings for his Lexicon in the archives of the University of Amsterdam during a study trip.

I have also been heavily influenced by the work of Matthew Carter, and in particular by his approach to typeface design for screens and the way that he integrates the different constraints of the screen display into his drawings. I had the opportunity to meet him when he participated in the Rencontres Internationales de Lure in 2018 and I really learned a lot from my contact with this very inspiring and accessible person.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
This is a question that I often ask myself. I tend to answer that it is like any form of creation. What is the point of writing a new novel or a new song? For me the possibilities for exploration in the artistic domain are truly infinite.


Is it really possible to create something new in the field of typeface design?
We have all been marked by the legacy of the great designers who sought to push back the boundaries of letterforms. Beyond historical influences, the production constraints and contexts of use are constantly changing. The way that each type designer assimilates their influences and projects themselves into an original context leads to the emergence of new issues and new research.


How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
As with every other design project, before starting I need to appropriate the context and understand the issues involved. I seek to develop formal responses that are anchored in the associated constraints. Then, little by little I refine my sketches through a process of iteration, which consists of working simultaneously on an individual point of view of the letterform and within the overall nature of the typeface. I particularly like this work of experimentation in which one must work on a level of detail while not losing sight of its impact within the type color, doing this until a balance, an equilibrium, a satisfying response is obtained.


What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
They are both intimately linked. In my historical references I have often sought to understand the technical context of typeface design and this is a great source of inspiration to me. But though my Service Designer side feels comfortable with the exercise of responding to a particular need, I also have another more instinctive side that feeds off the formal and cultural aspects of the history of typography, not focusing too much on technique. To be honest, this relationship can be somewhat conflictual: moving forward while holding on to what has been left behind, having a technical and historical framework while simultaneously trying to move beyond it. For me this is the essential mission of a designer, irrespective of the field in which they work.


Why have you chosen to distribute your characters and typefaces with 205TF?
I like the idea of being represented by a French foundry, as I learned everything that I know about type design in France and from French teachers. I also identify with the fact that 205TF is a business that operates on a human scale and one that represents independent designers. Ultimately the determining factor in my decision was the quality of the work of the range of designers that makes up the 205TF catalogue.


Do you think that typography can save the world?
I think that typography can be quite powerful in the manner in which it conditions the reader and thus plays a key role in the transmission of messages, in the learning process and in the various aspects of this close connection that written language has with humanity. However it is doubtlessly through articulation with other disciplines that typography can provide its greatest contribution to the world.

Do you teach? If so, where, and why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
For the last two years I have occasionally taught in the Gobelins, working with Design et Management de l’Innovation Interactive master students in workshops and on specific subjects related to Service Design. I have also begun to work with students who are writing their dissertations and also participate in teaching panels to whom the students present their work.
It is truly rewarding to be able to place one’s experience in the service of young people who are in the process of defining themselves as future designers. In reality transmission is a two way street. For my part I find it highly stimulating to be in contact with them and to explore the subjects that drive them in their work.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I am currently working on a book of typographic illustrations that compare French and Portuguese expressions. It will be the second publication in the collection that I began in 2019 with Loufoquerie, in collaboration with Cássia D’Elia.
For me this project is a way of creating a dialogue between my passions for typography, Graphic Design and languages.

Alice Savoie

France

How did you get involved with typeface design? What led you to this practise?
After a Baccalaureate in Applied Arts followed by a degree in visual communication at the Ésaa Duperré in Paris, my initiation to typography really began at the École Estienne. There I learned the basics in calligraphy and typeface design with Franck Jalleau, Michel Derre, Margaret Gray... Previously I had been lucky enough to meet teachers who were passionate about typography, like Hervé Aracil at Duperré, who had already transmitted their enthusiasm for the subject to me.
I then continued my education in the UK, with a Master in Typeface Design at the University of Reading, graduating in 2007. I then worked as a Typeface Designer for Monotype for a number of years before starting my own practice in 2010. I also embarked on historical research with a PhD at the University of Reading, which I completed in 2014.

What influences you? Are there typeface designers whose work you appreciate in particular?
My influences are quite diverse. I like to draw on historical sources (with a sweet spot for type specimens from French foundries from the end of the 19th century). I am instinctively drawn to typefaces that tell a story, that create a unique vibration. Cyrus Highsmith, Laura Meseguer, Alejandro Lo Celso and Frantisek Storm are among the contemporary typeface designers that I admire for example. They have the common trait of developing a singular typographic style, each one in a very different tone but always with great mastery.

In your opinion, what is the point of creating a new typeface when so many already exist?
Typeface designers often use the analogy of the chair, or the garment, to justify the fact of designing new typefaces: there are already many type families in existence, some more classical, some more fashionable; some tend to be functional and others are more ornamental, archetypal or unique… But like for any design object, it is always necessary to renew existing forms in order to respond to the needs and the spirit of a time. Moving beyond this analogy, typefaces are fundamental tools for communication, and in that respect they have to respond to certain technical requirements and cultural needs, which are constantly evolving. It is therefore up to the type designer to identify these evolutions, in order to propose meaningful typographical tools to users.

How do you begin work on a new typeface? Do you have a particular process?
Generally the process depends on the nature of the project. My design process varies depending whether it is a third party commission or a self-initiated project. A lot of my personal work is inspired by historical forms, or find qn origin in handwriting. I generally have a need to appropriate these forms and to bring them to maturity through drawing by hand, although digitization does arrive very early on in my process. Both approaches nourish each other in parallel. I generally work on the development of “the DNA” of a typeface, by developing a restricted set of letters, this way I can explore different leads before settling on the most convincing one to then extend my set of letters.

What is your relationship with the history of typography? What is your relationship with technology?
Having embarked on a PhD in type history with a subject that takes a very close interest in the development of 20th century typesetting technologies, these two topics are definitely at the heart of my preoccupations. Understanding where letterforms, and the typographical tools that we manipulate, come from, is for me an essential element of my type design practice. This has allowed me to develop a critical point of view regarding the design processes that we put into place. It is not a matter of a logic of “recycling” of typographical forms, but rather to put different eras into perspective so as to better understand the context in which we practice typeface design today.

Do you think that typography can save the world?
Typography remains an essential tool for communication and the circulation of knowledge, and in this it seems that it has an important role to play in our societies. It may not save the world, but it can certainly allow the world to communicate more easily. Projects such as Noto, run by Google or “Missing Scripts” that we are developing at the ANRT in partnership with the Universities of Mainz and Berkeley are moving in that direction. This seems to me to be a good start.

You teach at Atelier national de recherche typographique and Écal in Lausanne. Why does this role of transmission seem important to you?
Art schools provide an extremely rich and stimulating environment. The students arrive with their personalities, their intuitions, their curiosity and their experiences, and it is extremely stimulating to work with them. I think that my idea of teaching becomes tangible more-so in the exchanges rather than in transmission as such, even though, of course, I do accompany the students, sometimes guiding them and sharing my experience and my skills with them, particularly in typeface design.
The ANRT is a particular case as we have been developing a number of research projects in typography in partnership with laboratories that operate in very different fields such as linguistics, computer sciences, egyptology… These projects have a prospective dimension and lead us to answering questions that we haven't necessarily been faced with before now, and to developing specific ways of working. This research dimension implies that we are all constantly learning, whether speaking of our students or the teaching staff. It is a privileged work environment for the researcher and typeface designer that I am.

What type design project are you currently working on?
I am working on a new typeface family loosely inspired by Linotype’s legibility group, a series of metal typefaces from the Twentieth century that was aimed at newspaper composition. But right now a significant part of my time is occupied by a research project entitled ‘Women in Type’, which is a historical study of women’s contribution to typographical drawing offices. This is a research project based at the University of Reading, and there are three of us in the team: Prof. Fiona Ross, Dr. Helena Lekka, and myself.