“It’s definitely a character,” Displaay’s Founder & Type Designer Martin Vácha, tells us, discussing the Czech type foundry’s playful sans serif release, Jokker. “It’s a unique look that we haven’t seen on the market,” he adds, reinterpreting the ‘Grotesque’ genre with a distinctive elevated x-height. As such, the typeface – whose name is inspired by DC’s catalogue of comics – presents a contrast between legibility through its geometric forms and tight terminals, and the mysterious, strange and eccentric meaning of the word ‘grotesque’ in a non-typographic context. Opting to explore this juxtaposition, the resulting sans serif typeface is undeniably playful; discovering the character and quirks possible within pragmatic, accessible design.
