Play by Instinct: Playful Fonts by Blaze Type.
Foundry collection
Typography
Type design
What happens when we leave behind traditional constructs and expectations, and instead embrace play and exploration?
Through three collaborations with multi-disciplinary creatives, we’re exploring just that — what happens when we create for the sake of creating, and the ways creativity and intuition can transform typography into a playful and multi-sensory experience.
Our collaborator for this part of the series is Jazlyn Fung Hei Man, a type designer from Hong Kong and Australia. Read on for her favorite playful font selections from Monotype Fonts.
Zoo
Zoo Display is a strong and high-contrast display typeface. The inspiration for Zoo comes from the lettering found on the vinyl sleeves of a French jazz music band called Zoo. The letters Z and O established the construction constraints of the design of the full character set. The asymmetrical distribution of the shapes gives it boundless energy. Zoo combines sharpness and roundness, at once delicate and sturdy, with a touch of jazz.
Sizek
Sizek is an experimental display typeface that reimagines and deconstructs the classical calligraphic structure of letters. It takes inspiration from digital glitches, lags, and damaged or half-loaded files, reflecting the challenges and quirks of working with technology. Sizek presents a fractured, harsh, and edgy aesthetic. Letters are disrupted by intentional breaks and divisions, reassembled into unconventional shapes and counters. These irregular forms also evoke a sense of human nervousness and physical tics, reflecting the chaotic beauty and unpredictability of the digital age.
Negatif
Negatif comes from an intention to simplify the gothic letter with a unique black style. The letterforms are rooted in calligraphic research and were cut out in black paper to create raw, angular, rough-cut forms. Negatif imagines type as sculpture while retaining the gothic inspiration. The most unique feature of Negatif is its spacing. Carried out from Glyphs app, the letters touch each other and have been reworked to create a solid and black block of text. The letters have been designed to be displayed in large use cases where that sculptural quality is unmistakable. They are bold enough to add textural effects and to play with overlays. It’s up to you to reveal your darkest side!
Balete
Balete evokes the eerie structure of the balete tree, infamous in Philippine folklore for being a dwelling place of supernatural beings. Characterized by dangling roots which the hemi epiphytic species uses to strangle and eventually consume its host tree victim, the letterforms feature creeping, slender tendrils that emerge from twisting stems, wrought from the illusion of fluid calligraphy without the presence of a single curved line. With various spirits in local mythology said to inhabit its hollows, from faint apparitions to hefty chain-smoking giants, the type family consists of distinctly drawn Roman and Italic styles ranging from the hypnotic Thin to charismatic Black weights. Just as its monstrous growth and enchanting tales prevent humans from tearing down its old-growth roots, Balete is beguiling enough to tell haunting stories and create spellbinding compositions begging for a bit of mystique.
Narri
Narri is a playful display typeface designed by Elsa Drevous. The system is created with curvy lines, strong inverted contrast and sharp endings, resulting in organic calligraphic shapes. Not following the classic rules of calligraphy and mixing influences, the rendering is non-conformist and unique. The design is inspired by the dancing shapes of flames. The ornamental form of this typeface also allows glyphs to be used as decorative letters, or simply as distinctive shapes. The strong identity of the design makes it a perfect font to create lively distinctive branding projects.
