Font Licensing Mess

Este artículo está también disponible en español

Too often, we face the challenge of explaining font licences to students, customers, colleagues, or friends; it proves difficult every time. Back in 2023, we asked ourselves what could we do to improve our understanding of the topic and explain it better? We began collecting information from foundries, tons of data that is not only valuable for us but also for other type users, font makers, and educators. This article is a short introduction to the project and the information available in our website. We also post updates, from time to time, on social media.

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Font Licensing Mess

This article is also available in English

Más de una vez nos hemos encontramos con el desafío de explicar qué es y cómo funciona una licencia tipográfica. La respuesta no suele ser fácil. Hace un par de años, en 2023, nos propusimos profundizar en el tema para poder explicarlo mejor. Empezamos recopilando información de fundiciones; un montón de datos que serían útiles, no solo para nosotras, sino también para otras personas que utilizan fuentes, crean tipografías o trabajan en educación. Este artículo presenta un resumen y algunos resultados de este proyecto de investigación, en el que hemos estado trabajando durante casi dos años. Podéis encontrar más información en nuestra página web y recibir actualizaciones en redes sociales.

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Happy 10th Birthday, Alphabettes!

Today is Alphabettes.org’s 10th Birthday! On our first birthday, we celebrated with cake. On our fifth birthday, we celebrated with wood type. Five years later, we’re still here and this time, we’re celebrating the milestone with a book! Our book.

Alphabettes Soup: Feminist Approaches to Type
384 pages
100+ contributors
55 original articles, essays, and interviews
120+ typefaces by women and non-binary people

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Feeling Seen, Eating Cake, Making Soup

It’s been over three months since the SEEN–Around the World Symposium, hosted at the LUX Pavilion and organized by Gutenberg University of Applied Sciences in Mainz, Germany, April 9–11, 2025. Presented in a hybrid format, the conference brought together presentations and discussions with women and non-binary designers on topics related to typography, type design, and lettering. Rather than provide a detailed conference overview, here are some snapshots from the 3-day adventure, which included silly photoshoots with the Papa Gutenberg statue.

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Multilingüe 2025: Diseñando Futuros para las Lenguas Originarias

English below

En un mundo donde más de 7,000 lenguas luchan por sobrevivir, Multilingüe 2025 emerge como un espacio virtual y abierto para construir herramientas que preserven la diversidad lingüística de América. Este encuentro gratuito, que tendrá lugar el 23 de mayo a las 9:00 AM (hora del centro de México), reunirá a comunidades indígenas, lingüistas y diseñadores tipográficos para dialogar sobre revitalización lingüística, diseño inclusivo y justicia digital.

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24 Hour Hangout for International Women’s Day 2025

What time is it? It’s time for our annual tradition: the Alphabettes 24-Hour Hangout to celebrate International Women’s Day! ⏰ From March 8, 2025 at 12:00am ET / 05:00 UTC to 11:59pm ET / 04:59 UTC 3/9, stop by for conversations on type, design, lettering, the universe, etc. Some times may be more spontaneous and chatty, other hours might be filled with activities and presentations.

>>>Join the Live Hangout!<<<

Note: We’ll be using Jitsi.

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Book Alert: Alphabettes Soup!

Next year, Alphabettes turns 10, and we’re celebrating with a pot-luck book! Alphabettes Soup: Ten Years of Feminist Approaches to Type will be served up — piping hot — in September 2025, published by Bikini Books, a feminist publisher based in Porto. Read all about it here: bikini-books.com/products/alphabettes-soup-2015-2025-ten-years-of-feminist-approaches-to-type

Help us make the Soup!

To date, we’ve raised about half of the total amount we need to bring this book to boil. We still have a long way to go, and this is where we’d love your help! All funds go to the printing and production, as well as offering honorariums to authors. You can also help us spread the word.

➤Are you a company, and would you like to sponsor this book? Reach out at sponsorships@bikini-books.com.

➤Are you an individual who would like to make a donation? 💚 DONATE VIA PAYPAL 💚

All sponsorships and donations will be acknowledged in the book. Every spoonful of your support helps! 🥄😘

Join the Alphabettes Soup Mailing List!

Receive updates on the book’s progress, pre-sale announcements, and invite you to our launch events. Stay tuned for next steps! 🥣😘👌💚

 

Exhibition: Same Bold Stories? Type Design by Women and Queers in the 20th and 21st Centuries

photo by Simon Malz

Same Bold Stories? Type Design by Women and Queers in the 20th and 21st Centuries
Exhibition at the Klingspor Museum, Offenbach am Main, Germany
July 19—November 24, 2024

A Quick Intro

In July, I had the chance to attend the opening of Same Bold Stories?, an exhibition that explores the question: Where are women’s voices in type design that complement the existing history?

While conversations about women in type design are becoming more common, exhibitions on this topic are still pretty rare. That’s why it’s so important to acknowledge and appreciate this effort. The exhibition was developed in collaboration with the Klingspor Museum (Dr. Dorothee Ader, Valerij Ledenev, Tatjana Prenzel), design studio Turbo Type (Laura Brunner, Leonie Martin), and the feminist collective +FEM (Kristina Mukhacheva, Naomi Rado). The opening took place on July 19, and I was lucky to be there. The feedback has been very positive, with media describing it in fitting words like “Fat, brave, and cheeky!” (hr2-Kultur Review) and “Arial, Bold, Times New Roman – Queer and Feminine Font Design” (Deutschlandfunk Kultur Interview). The exhibition runs until November, with various events planned. You can check the details here.

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Alphabettes Variety Show: June 13, 2024

We’re back for the Alphabettes Variety Show at the TypeLab at Typographics on Thursday, June 13, 2024, 12:45-1:20p EDT! This year some of us will be at 41 Cooper Square, but you’re also welcome to join from the comfort of wherever you are via the livestream or sign up for the TypeLab Zoom link to participate, ask questions, share soup recipes, etc.

Now in its 7th edition, but first back in Cooper Union since 2018, the Variety Show includes live interviews, interactive activities, and fun things. While we can’t guarantee more dance lessons or birthday cakes, we might have a few more surprise up our sleeves. Stay tuned to find out! ⭐️

2024 Variety Show graphic features Tiny Grotesk by Robin Mientjes.