Inside The Type Designer's Mind

I have a great admiration for type designers. It is an art form I dabbled with obliquely, through a love for Calligraphy that kept me obsessed for the better part of ten years. I do not regret the many hours spent mastering the lost art of handwritten letterform. It has taught me the artful arrangement of type and whitespace, a skill I call upon in my current role as a web designer.

Type design is a more rigid and exacting art than Calligraphy. And, it requires the same degree of obsession to master! I appreciated a recent online interview with Jos Buivenga, a self-taught Type designer who makes his work available for free online. Many of his designs are reminiscent of classic typefaces. Yet, they have a vigorous character of their own.

Jos was asked why he designed type. "It has grown on me. It’s now more or less like breathing to me. I can’t help it. I just want to do it. It allows me to be highly involved—or even lose myself—in a creative process."

Jos's answer perhaps sums up the creative drive that spurs on so many of us "creative types." We "just want to do it." Be sure to visit exlibris, the font foundry started by Jos Buivenga, and download a handsome typeface or two.