Established in 2020, Paris-based Apex Type Foundry presents the work of type designer Alex Chavot from years of design education at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Lyon (“National School of Fine Arts in Lyon, France”), an internship at Production Type and his job at Montreuil-based design firm deValence. “I consider myself more of a graphic designer making fonts, rather than a true type designer in the classic sense of the term,” says Chavot, explaining his process often mixes influences and leaves room for accidents. “Being largely self-taught, my practice is informed by the history of typography but remains unshackled by its dogmas and rules. I believe this gives me a certain freedom, perhaps more leeway in what I dare to undertake in terms of design.” Keeping his eyes open to all forms of the written word, he finds inspiration from his surroundings and observations on vernacular writing. “Signs, store fronts, carved stones, vernacular sign paintings, graffiti—anything can become a starting point to be remixed with my own tastes, desires and cultural baggage,” Chavot explains. “Every human attempt to fix the written language on a surface might be of interest, especially when it’s done by outsiders to the field.” The larger impetus for Apex Type is a sense of cultural momentum Chavot feels surrounding typography in Europe at the moment. “I’m more excited by the multitude of small independent foundries and designers that have sprung up in recent years, offering a broad, fresh vision to the world of typography and design, than I am by the huge corporations that serve up classics to the dregs and amass fortunes on long-dead designers,” he says. “In this sense, I hope to encourage my fellow designers to do the same and support emerging young talents out there to keep the vitality and diversity of the field alive.”
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