Expand your typeface and your perspective on type design.
Immerse yourself in the world of type design while surrounded by the support of industry professionals and a community of like-minded typophiles. This live, online program is for designers who already have the beginnings of a typeface, but want to build it out into a multi-weight family. Students will work towards creating two compatible masters that are ready to interpolate into a larger family.
We’ll also focus on developing a more reflective design process and a more thoughtful typeface — one that is an expression of your unique outlook but also meets the needs of readers and users of type. Through the work of your classmates you’ll be exposed to a variety of typeface genres, giving you a window into approaches and styles outside of your own. We’ll weave these elements together and build a strong foundation in typeface design, not only for your current typeface but for future projects as well.
Through lectures and feedback sessions, we’ll explore these topics and dive into type design as a living, evolving discipline. By the end, you’ll be ready to tackle more complex projects with more confidence, and will have a better understanding of contemporary type design practice.
Andrew Bogard, Graphic Designer
Practica program with Sol and Nicole was a delight, I was not only able to develop my typeface by the hand of very experienced and generous professionals, in a warm and friendly environment, but to know new ways to approach expanding a font family.
Dafne Martínez, Heartline
Week 1 |
Jan 16 / Course introduction + lecture Jan 18 / Lecture: the brief, making useful type |
Week 2 |
Jan 23 / Project introductions Jan 25/ Lecture: systems in typeface design |
Week 3 |
Jan 30 / Mini lecture: designing proofs for feedback + feedback session Feb 1 / Lecture: planning your typeface family, intro to interpolation |
Week 4 |
Feb 6 / Feedback session Feb 8 / Lecture: interpolation and its possibilities, design space ideation |
Week 5 |
Feb 13 / Review of students’ font files Feb 15 / Guest lecture: a case study with Alice Savoie |
Week 6 |
Feb 20 / Feedback session Feb 22 / Flex session: Q&A |
Week 7 |
Feb 27 / Feedback session Feb 29 / Lecture: design of special characters |
The schedule is subject to modifications.
Tuesday classes are 2.5 hours. Thursday classes are 1.5 hours.
Classes begin at 10:30am Chicago / 12:30pm Buenos Aires / 5:30pm Berlin / Convert Are classes recorded? → Will daylight savings time change my class time? → |
What a blast! ... The program has boosted both my confidence and my motivation to produce more fonts. I recommend it highly.
Guillaume Berry, Rawr
Tuition is on a sliding scale and you decide which tier you pay according to your means. No matter what tier you choose, the course is exactly the same. Fees are stated in US dollars.
Latin Two was created with a diverse community of typography enthusiasts and professionals in mind. Because the program devotes significant time to personalized instruction, it caters to individuals with a range of motivations. Whether you’re aspiring to become a professional type designer, seeking a formal platform to deepen your knowledge of the craft, looking to enhance your confidence and tackle larger type families, or aiming to release your own font or establish a foundry, this course is for you. Our participants include recent graduates, parents, educators, working typeface designers, web and graphic designers, and passionate learners from around the globe. Latin Two welcomes individuals from all walks of life who share a common passion for typeface design and have the start of a typeface waiting to be fleshed out into a multi-weight family.
Based on our past experiences with students, we expect that most people interested in taking Latin Two will also want to take Latin One. The exception is students who have already received significant formal training in type design.
Mon, November 27, 2023 — Priority enrollment opens for Latin One students
Mon, December 4, 2023 — Applications open for everyone
Sun, December 17, 2023 — Applications close, last day to apply
Rolling – Notification emails sent out (see How to apply)
Fri, December 22, 2023 – 25% tuition deposit due
Wed, January 10, 2024 — Final payment due (except those on the payment plan)
Tues, January 16, 2024 — Latin Two begins, first day of class
Yes! — you’ll spend 15 weeks expanding a typeface you have started outside the program and practical experience is an important component for your individual advancement. However, the typeface doesn’t have to be fully formed or in a finished state when you apply. See → How far along does my typeface have to be to apply to the program?
Text, display, connected script, experimental, sans serif, serif — bring whatever you’re excited to work on.
The typeface you bring is your starting point. We don’t expect you to show up with a finished piece of work, but you should be past the ideation phase and have a strong direction in place. At a minimum, you’ll need a single weight in progress with a basic character set. The definition of “basic character set” depends on the style of font, but it is likely most of the lowercase and some uppercase, or just the uppercase if the font is intended for all-caps settings. If you have more, that’s great!
We recommend committing a minimum of six hours per week to work outside of class and that might include readings.
All demonstrations using a font editor will be conducted in Glyphs. Many of the concepts are universal (like drawing or spacing) and will easily translate from one font editor to the next. There is a lot to learn that is independent of a font editor. Although any font editor is welcome, just know that some content is Glyphs-specific and our primary fluency is with Glyphs. If you are interested in trying Glyphs, you can opt to use the trial license that comes free with the course.
They’re the same course, we changed the name to better differentiate our evolving offerings!
Your primary application materials consist of two items included in a single PDF: a cover letter and a specimen of the typeface you propose to work on during Latin Two. Once applications open, an online form will collect basic information about you (name, address, etc.) and allow you to upload your PDF.
When the application window opens, applications will be reviewed as soon as they are received and you will be notified of your status in the program within a few business days. Applications will be accepted until the program is full or we reach the application deadline, whichever happens first.
Applications open December 4, 2023.
The cover letter should respond to the following questions:
Note: Please add your full name to your PDF file, for example: daisy_newman-application.pdf.
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