Transitioning from creating type as a hobby to a full blown type foundry collective is a pretty awesome feat as Ale Paul, Typeface design director and one of founders of Sudtipos has done! We're loving the beautiful forms Ale creates read on to hear how he got to where he is and where he thinks design is heading!
When did you fall in love with design and how did you get started?
I became a typeface designer after I lost my job as a graphic designer during one of the many economic crises that happened in Argentina. Up until to that point, designing type was just a hobby for me. It became much more than that when I found quite a bit of time to explore in depth some of my ideas for the packaging design market that had employed me. That was really my initial approach — making type for branders and packagers, tools that my former colleagues and I would have been able to use for packaging work. Most of my work is still rooted in that context.
Where did you study and what were some of your first jobs?
I studied at the University of Buenos Aires. My first design job was to create and ad for a kind of voodoo doctor and at the same time a poster for a psychiatrist.
What was your plan for graduating and what actually happened?
My plan was to move to a place like New York or Tokyo but when I was 23 I had a baby and life goals changed a little.
Give us the elevator pitch on what you do.
I create fonts usually during 12 hours per day. With the extra time I do graphics to sell that fonts and with the remain time I eat, travel and sleep.
Graphic design has been mutating in recent years and is being redefined... will surely result in a design where ideas and concepts are again important.
What qualities and skills to you look for in a graduate?
I like people who have interest in experimentation with new technologies but with an interest in the history too. I always look at the use of the typography too.
Are you involved in any teaching and if so how it shapes your practice?
Yes, every time I am invited to give a lecture I usually teach a workshop. I try to go analog and only use pencil and of course our brains and eyes. It's a lettering workshop where the focus is not a like on social media but a deep observation of the shapes, counterparts and legibility.
Any passion projects/collabs you would like to share?
With many Sudtipos (my foundry) releases I try to collaborate with artists. It places me and my work out of my comfort zone. Recently I was involved with 5 illustrators to create a set of color fonts, it was a great experience for all of us.
Where do you think design is heading in the next five years and how will you adapt?
Graphic design has been mutating in recent years and is being redefined. New actors, new technologies available to all will surely result in a design where ideas and concepts are again important.
What is the design landscape like on your city and where do you fit in?
The same problems as always, unequal competition, low prices, lack of time, understanding new media that are moving fast, finding an effective role in social change, defining one's identity as designers.
Where to find Sudtipos online.
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