Dear Alphabettes: Legal protection of typeface design

Dear Alphabettes,

I have a question about the legal protection of typeface design. Is registering a typeface design (in addition to its name) something that should always be done? After asking different lawyers, some would advise doing it each time (more work for them), some say that registering the name is already a protection that can be considered enough, although not 100% protection.

Lisa (France)

NOTE: The answers below are comments from members of Alphabettes. The information shared here is based on their own experiences, and may not necessarily accurately reflect the law in the countries being discussed. We always recommend getting legal advice specific to your situation.


Continue reading

Ukrainian type design heritage in modern context

We have a strong type tradition in Ukraine. Over the past few years, Ukrainian type design has been growing rapidly. I believe that now, during the war, when Russian invaders are destroying not only our nation but also our cultural heritage, it is even more important to highlight Ukraine’s graphic and type tradition.

I enjoy creating letters that are inspired by Ukrainian architecture (for example, my Misto font), works by Ukrainian graphic artists of the last century and vernacular typography. The lettering I did for Alphabettes was inspired by the 1954 book cover created by Mykhailo Dmytrenko. I like to take historical samples as a basis and rethink them more or less in a modern context. In this way, you can build a bridge between the past and the present. Visual communication becomes stronger and makes sense.

Mykhailo Dmytrenko, 1954

Continue reading

List of resources on designing diacritics

Aleksandra Samuļenkova shared this list of ‘sources concerning diacritics and special characters of the Latin script’ which is just too good to be buried on Twitter.
It would be great if we could all add more tips in the comments!

• An essay by Victor Gaultney on Problems of diacritic design for Latin script text faces

• An article by David Březina On Diacritics

• A great book about Central European diacritics: The Insects Project

Continue reading