Creative Characters Monotype
-
- Arts
-
We live in a world awash in typography - whether we realize it or not. From the road signs that lead us home to the phones in our pockets, typography is front and center in nearly every waking moment of our day. Come meet the people and hear the stories behind the letters that shape our world.
-
Studying the subconscious superpowers of type trends across the globe.
How do cultural influences, historical contexts, and geopolitics influence design and typography? As part of the 2024 Type Trends report, we wanted to take a deeper look at how design is manifesting across the globe.
This episode will take you on a journey from the bustling streets of New York City to the colorful neighborhoods of Santiago, the romantic avenues of Paris, and the vibrant restaurants of Kuala Lumpur.
Tune in for insights, stories, and anecdotes from creative thought leaders shaping their local design scenes: Jolene Delisle, Founder & Creative Director of The Working Assembly; Belén La Rivera, Senior Brand Designer, and Alan Eaglehurst, Creative Director, at FutureBrand; Violaine Orsoni and Jérémy Schneider, Creative Partners at VJ Type and Violaine & Jeremy; and Joanne Chew, Founder of Fictionist Studio.
Want to learn more about type trends? Join our Type Trends 2024 webinar on March 21; register here.
Heading to SXSW? Don't miss a live recording of this very podcast! Join us March 13 at 3pm; register here: mntype.co/sxsw
-
Talking type that melts in your heart (not in your hand) with Steffi Marty.
This week, host Charles Nix sits down with Steffi Marty, the Global Director of Brand Identity and Design for Mars Snacking. If that sounds abstract, you probably know the brands she oversees: the Mars Bar, Snickers, Skittles, and M&M's.
Charles and Steffi collaborated on a new typeface for M&M's, released last year, and the two discuss the joys and challenges of managing such beloved and personal brands, why typography is crucial to that, and what she calls a "ruthless discipline to weed out the things that are unnecessary.”
Heading to SXSW? Don't miss a live recording of this very podcast! Join us March 13 at 3pm; register here: mntype.co/sxsw -
Behind the 2024 Type Trends report with Jordan Bell and Damien Collot.
You’ve probably heard something about it, but just in case you missed it: our 2024 Type Trends report is finally here! And good news: this week on Creative Characters, you can tune in to hear even more about it.
Join Type Designer Jordan Bell and Creative Type Director Damien Collot as they discuss their experiences curating this year’s report, guide you through the trends that moved them, and discuss the projects they admired. Take a plunge into the styles that shaped the typographic landscape this past year and find out more about what sets them apart. Who knows, you might fancy something a little bit deformed? Or perhaps you’ll welcome a return to serifs? Maybe you’ll crave a little bit of Everythingallofthetime! Listen up — this is what type is telling us as 2024 begins. Enjoy!
If you haven’t done so already, download the report at monotype.com/type-trends-2024 — and if you’re keen to hear more about it, be sure to sign up for our webinar on March 21, 2024! -
Studios we love: the stories of ArrowType, Type Salon, and Blaze Type.
We're closing out 2023 by spotlighting three amazing type studios from different corners of the world — and three of our favorite hosts.
This week, Charles Nix, Phil Garnham, and Tom Foley each selected a type designer they admire to bring on the show: Stephen Nixon of ArrowType; Alja Herlah, Directress & Lead type designer at Type Salon; and Matthieu Salvaggio, Founder and Type Designer at Blaze Type. Three perspectives, three journeys, and three lively conversations about our favorite subject. Enjoy! -
Roger Black and Charles Nix trace the history of type.
Roger Black draws from origins and evolution of type, type trend drivers, and his own career in this week’s episode with our own Charles Nix. Combining various lenses that allow creatives to see between and behind the lines of type, the two designers inspect the nitty gritty of typographic design — from machinery to wider influences of cultural shifts — and how to look backwards in order to see forward and achieve timeless and iconic type design.
Roger Black is a renowned American designer known for his extensive and influential portfolio, from editorial designs for Rolling Stone, New York Times Magazine, and Newsweek to his digital work for Barnes & Noble, the Senate, and more. -
Celebrating community, embracing vulnerability, and fostering self-discovery at Adobe MAX 2023.
Now that the Adobe MAX dust has settled, we bring you our second annual recap of the inspiring event that brought 10,000 from around the world to Los Angeles in October. Between emotional, soul-baring presentations that went much deeper than design, to the “font connection” game at the Monotype booth, there was a palpable sense of community and connection at MAX this year.
In this episode, you’ll hear from twenty or so voices, including type designers, animators, comic book designers, students, and even a specialty letterpress printer, all of whom were kind enough to share their time and their stories with us on the mic.
Read more about Adobe MAX here: monotype.com/adobe-max-2023-follow-up
Follow our guests:
Zipeng Zhu - instagram.com/zzdesign
John Roshell - swelltype.com, comicbookfonts.com
Chris Hoffman - velleitystudios.com
Cam Sherrill - camsherrill.com
Nubia Navarro - nubikinistudio.com
Eph Gerard Cruz - instagram.com/quantumeph, xfinitycreative.com
Joshua Ariza - instagram.com/joshua_ariza, joshuaariza.com
Ben Levitz - instagram.com/STUDIOONFIRE, studioonfire.com
Kelsey Slay - instagram.com/kelseyslaydesign
Customer Reviews
Highly recommend!
Creative Characters has quickly become a favorite in my feed! I’m consistently impressed by the engaging conversations, insightful content, and actionable ideas. I truly learn something every time I listen!
The Dawn of Adobe?
Just listened to the Draplin episode. This guys says that year 2000 was the “Dawn of Adobe”… These kids… please do some research before making bold statements. Designers over the age of 50 have been using Adobe products most likely since before you were born. Just because many universities had invested in other brands like Macromedia or Corel, doesn’t mean that professional designers were using those as well.
Cozy and creative podcast
Doesn’t matter if you have design experience or not, this podcast is just so fun and interesting to listen to. I really appreciate the variety of guests. Also, the hosts are hilarious.