Font or Fine Art? An Honest Critique

“This might hurt your eyes 😀 But seriously … I am really curious what you think of these kinds of fonts. Although they are in the ‘wild type’ category, I am curious about your honest opinion (and critique).”

The Dutch artist Salventius shared his bold, line-drawing alphabet with me. It’s visually stunning, filled with hidden details and lively shapes. But is it practical for design? In this quick video and article, I’ll give my take on where it excels – and what could make it even better.

It all started with a message I got from the amazing Dutch artist Salventius on Instagram:

These alphabets definitely do not hurt my eyes, it’s actually quite the opposite. I really love Salventius’ style – the continuous line, there’s so much to discover! And used as letter shapes, it adds a layer of meaning. Now when I assess type, my focus isn’t on whether it’s “good”, but rather on its strengths and untapped potential. Because the real question is: What is it good for?

So what makes these letters interesting are the ornaments, the hidden, ambiguous faces and shapes, all the details. This means they definitely need to be used in large sizes, the bigger, the better! Like in drop cap. Because