In her ongoing series for PRINT, Dr. Dori Tunstall offers a monthly pairing of image and text that proves how much can be said in just 100 words. Drawing on her work as a design anthropologist and author of Decolonizing Design: A Cultural Justice Guidebook, Tunstall examines the ways design shapes—and is shaped by—culture, systems of power, and collective imagination. Her reflections invite readers to consider design as a tool for cultural change, one that is as deeply human as it is political. Join Dr. Dori for cut no. 5, perfect also for Type Tuesday!
Polymode and XYZ Type Keep It Real with Polymode Sans
XYZ Type and Polymode Studio’s release of a new variable typeface, Polymode Sans, and accompanying book of essays, Identity is Variable, offers another reason to celebrate Queer Design during and beyond Pride. Polymode Studio is a bi-coastal, LGBTQ+, and minority-owned graphic design studio. Wanting a new house typeface, they commissioned XYZ Type to design one reflective of the intersectional queer identities of all the studio partners. Grounded in queer ball culture, the typeface’s four-stage “Realness axis” reflects the political variability of queer safety and expressiveness: Act Basic, Go to Work, Have Attitude, and Be Opulent. Gives tens across the board.