Rotterdam, what's your type?

Dear Rotterdam,

I was walking down your streets and found myself wondering: what’s your type?

Is it something straightforward and efficient? Decorative and posh? Minimalistic and geometric? Angular and stretched out? Sharp and slanted? Bold and loud? Quiet and modest?

I looked at your street and traffic signs – firm, clear, uncompromising. RWS-Ee tells me where to go, how fast to drive, where to stop. But then
I saw the note taped to a lamppost, the sticky note by the doorbell, the handwritten hours on a shop window. I started noticing all the small,
human traces, imperfect and emotional, made quickly or with care, but always personal. Your public space holds so much more than the official language.

I couldn’t decide what type you are – so I made one.

But I’m just one person in this city, and I couldn’t make that decision alone. I collected the handwriting of people who live and work here, strangers, whose handwriting I quickly recognised when walking around the city. I photographed notes, letters, markings – whatever I could find.
I archived them and let their personal details create the letters of a new typeface.

The structure comes from function: from ‘Overpass’, from street signs, from systems that are designed to be neutral and clear. But the details – the loops, angles, and curves – those come from people.
From your people, Rotterdam.

Because I don’t think a purely functional typeface could ever capture you (and let’s be honest: are you even that functional?). You’re more than efficiency. You’re contradiction. You’re movement. You’re diverse. You’re
soft and harsh, often at the same time. You’re a place where languages mix, where things change quickly, where sticky notes are stuck. You needed a typeface that reflects that – something layered, imperfect, tender.

A typeface that can carry both order and emotion. That holds space for individuality within a shared structure. A type that celebrates the people who live with you, who love you, and who care for you.

So — is this your type, Rotterdam?

With love,
Sahra

The typeface is meant to not only encourage handwriting in the privacy of your own shopping list but to also leave your handwriting in the public space of Rotterdam – you should decorate the city with your ‘m’ that turns into little waves, with interesting proportions, a captial letter that’s way too big for the rest and handwriting that you think is illegible.

This typeface is released under an open source license. That means you're free to use, modify, and share it – whether you're a designer, researcher, student, or simply curious about type. I believe in creating designs that feel personal and have some sort of human touch and I hope this typeface can be this humaness in your own designs.

Please credit when you can, and feel free to reach out if you do something with it or add your own letters – I’d love to see what you do with it or add to it.

The project and typeface ‘Rotterdam, what’s your type?’ explore the tension between a purely functional typography and the human handwriting with all its quirks and special details. With the handwriting taken from the public space of Rotterdam it’s also a visual archive of the visual landscape of the city. It archives the handwriting of the people in Rotterdam and creates something new from it to both celebrate and demonstrate a special human touch within functional typography.

Download the typeface here!

The typeface includes both functional letters and letters that include details of handwriting found in the public space of Rotterdam. Personalise the typeface and use the letters you enjoy most – it’s your own image that you’re creating with the letters.