Responses by Edward Dżułaj, founder and type designer, July Type.
Background: The alphabet, a fundamental communication tool that constantly evolves, is crucial for the survival of nations. Having been born into a Polish-Ukrainian family, Latin and Cyrillic scripts both play an important role in my work. The current war in Ukraine underlined the link between language and identity, raising questions about Ukrainian Cyrillic and the influence of the Russian regime over the centuries within a sociopolitical context. Cyrillic script was added in all our releases specifically to support accessibility for Ukrainian users, aiming to highlight the significance of the Ukrainian language and culture.
Design thinking: The development of JT Peleton is a typographical tool offering three optical sizes—text, headline and poster. The main purpose was to design a typeface in Latin and Cyrillic script that works well in text and display settings.
Challenges: The extensive character set. Developing the typeface took me three years and sparked my interest in Cyrillic, particularly its historical references and evolution. This was also the first typeface I completed and published on my recently launched foundry July Type.
Visual influences: JT Peleton’s distinctive wedge serifs pay homage to the historical elegance of inscriptions on ancient monuments. The development of the typeface is a journey through time, echoing the elegance of 1800s wedge serif genres while seamlessly incorporating contemporary adjustments.
New lessons: The project sparked my research into the evolution and development of the Cyrillic script, with a particular focus on Ukrainian Cyrillic. Throughout the centuries, Ukraine and the surrounding region have been influenced by various sociopolitical changes that have also impacted the language and its alphabet. I reached out to Ukrainian designers like Oleksii Chekal to seek additional references and also to connect with Ukrainian makers, gaining insight into the current design scene.
Favorite details: I have been particularly delighted to see JT Peleton being used by designers. For instance, it was recently used alongside our other release JT Picolo in the book and identity for the Polish Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition, Venice Biennale, designed by Polish designer Janek Bersz at Full Metal Jacket Studio.
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