2024
GridType
tool | type | web

Cover image for GridType

GridType

ReactNextOpenTypeJSPaperJS
2024tooltypeweb

Design & Development: Katharina Nejdl

This project was developed during a year long funding of the Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie.

Grid-type.com is an experimental type tool. You can generate different types of grids with it, draw your letters within these grids and download them as a font file.

The tool can be used for experimental headline or logo typefaces, to explore new shapes and patterns. With this project, I wanted to incorporate code into the type design process, allowing for almost endless variations with different parameters and serendipitous encounters.

The type tool is inspired by historical grid-based type design with stencils, such as the Plaque Découpée Universelle from the 1870s – a single stencil that allows you to draw all the letters of the alphabet.

On grid-type.com, you can create your own stencils by selecting a grid and adjusting various parameters, such as the number of rows, columns, or the level of complexity. There are nine different grid types available, giving an insight into my research about grid construction. Some grids are geometric, based on rectangles, triangles, or circles. Others are inspired by how different display technologies, such as pixels and segments, have influenced type design. Additionally, there are references to historic grid-based type design, including Wim Crouwel, the Bauhaus and the Plaque Découpée Universelle.