vulnerably-borrowed from handwritten letters and notes, nicolas damiens and julien sens have converted the handwriting of david bowie, kurt cobain, john lennon, leonard cohen, and serge gainsbourg, into free typefaces that you can download in the link below. it’s humbling, using written language in such a way — especially in the case of cobain; some of the nuances in his handwriting — lazy c’s and tiny i’s — came directly from the words he scratched in his suicide letter.
all images courtesy of nicolas damiens and julien sens
lennon’s handwriting is organized; bowie’s is graphic; cohen’s has style; but there is something magnetic about kurt’s. kurt cobain formed nirvana in 1987, drawing inspiration from punk, blues and heavy metal, to create his own musical universe. at the time, we called it grunge. tortured, poetic — his writing profoundly affected a generation. here, designers nicolas damiens and julien sens analyze his writing from a purely visual perspective.
kurt’s longhand is scratchy, thin, sometimes small and uneven. he wasn’t afraid to bolden words, scratch them out, or exchange them for symbols more honest. kurt’s is an honest handwriting all around, both tortured and poetic. it looks the way his music sounds. using this typeface, experiencing your own thoughts, as if cobain wrote them: there’s something sad, but poetic about that too. what do you think of the others?
david bowie (9 articles)
ukiyo-e project celebrates david bowie with limited-edition woodblock prints
david bowie and his personas takeover new york city subway station
elon musk launches animation of spaceX falcon heavy on route to mars
spaceX is sending elon musk's personal tesla roadster into orbit
hundreds of david bowie stamps fall to earth from space in special tribute
scenographic david bowie exhibition at MIS by atelier marko brajovic
typography design (115 articles)
playful arabic font 'tajreed' references piet mondrian's abstract compositions
sawdust's redesign for the texas monthly is sharper. livelier. friendlier. texas-ier.
origami is an experimental arabic font influenced by the art of paper folding
design news
randy grubb invents a magic double decker bus with elevator to boot
#design
step inside this two-story moving sculpture.
step inside this two-story moving sculpture.
snøhetta recycles worn-out fish nets and ocean waste into S-1500 chair for NCP
#design
the project contributes to building a local, circular economy, as it employs plastic waste from the local industry to produce chairs in the same area.
the project contributes to building a local, circular economy, as it employs plastic waste from the local industry to produce chairs in the same area.
designboom presents LEXUS design award 2019 finalists
#design
this year’s finalists employed technology in even more creative ways to conceptualize transformative solutions that have the power to change lives.
this year’s finalists employed technology in even more creative ways to conceptualize transformative solutions that have the power to change lives.
volvo develops 3D-printed 'living seawall' to save the world's oceans from plastic pollution
#design
the project combines 50 tiles that mimic the root structure of mangrove trees.
the project combines 50 tiles that mimic the root structure of mangrove trees.
this is awesome, excellent graphics too
Notably about Kurt Cobain, you would be getting Courtney Love’s interpretation of his handwriting since she was the one who wrote his “suicide” letter. Interesting concept, however.
Great work. Where can I get them?
Sorry Jen… https://www.songwritersfonts.com/
You can still grab them from the wayback machine… the download links are there. If you arrive at a blank screen after clicking download just reload the page and the file should download. All five did for me anyway. Good luck.
https://web.archive.org/web/20180409100159/https://www.songwritersfonts.com/
As usual. chicks don’t count?