A bespoke type system designed for a quarterly print and digital editorial magazine covering architecture and urbanism.

The Challenge

The magazine needed a typographic system flexible enough to handle everything from long-form essays to photo essays to data visualizations — all while maintaining a coherent editorial voice across print and screen.

Spread from the magazine showing typographic hierarchy

Approach

I paired a high-contrast serif for headlines with a humanist sans-serif for body text. The serif — custom modified from an 18th century source — gives the publication gravitas without feeling academic. The sans handles long reads without fatigue.

The sizing scale is based on a 1.25 modular ratio, giving 12 distinct sizes that relate harmoniously at any pairing. Margin notes, captions, pull quotes, and running heads each occupy a dedicated tier.

Result

The system shipped with 48 defined text styles across print and digital. Six issues in, the editorial team reports spending less time in layout because the system handles the decisions for them.

Print spreads showing the type system in use