Space Typeface

Hilary VanWright asked me to create a headline typeface for a special issue on the future of space exploration. I was inspired by the way that our spacecraft are constructed of a nearly endless nest of interlocking parts. I thought it would be interesting to try to build letterforms this way instead of thinking of them as written, gestural forms. I studied the details in the photographs for the issue, paying particular attention to the Space Launch System vehicles and Artemis program spacesuits. I used these details to build a suite of parts from which I could assemble letters. I ended up making Hilary two different typefaces, one for the stories about the goals of missions and second for explaining the engineering being used for the missions.