Voxel Display
Typeface + Icon Design
2024
Overview
Influenced by the beeps and boops of old-school arcades, joysticks, and 8-bit displays, Voxel Display extracts the pixelated look of the era while containing it in a 17x17 grid with gutters. With thicker lines and a more drastic use of curves than typical pixelated or lo-res typefaces, Voxel Display positions itself as a functional yet fun option. The calculated yet visually dynamic dimensions of the glyphs create a playful typeface for display use.
Seven A’s
The A came before the rest of the set. Nothing else could be drawn until it settled what kind of face this was, so it took seven passes on the same 17x17 grid.
The first four stay symmetric and argue about weight. The apex loses a cell at each end, both stems go from four cells wide to five, and the shoulder steps out to nine, eleven, thirteen. Then the fifth runs the left arm flush to the edge of the square, the sixth is that same move mirrored to the right, and the seventh cuts a notch through the crossbar.
None of those last three made it into the font. The question underneath all of it was whether this would read as a techy pixel face or a fun one, and a flush edge is the straightest the letter ever gets. The set went back to the symmetric drawing and spent the rest of the alphabet leaning further into intentionally awkward curves.
Specimen
