New York-Based Designer Jessica Walsh Drops A New Type of Feeling

There’s a new type of designer in cool kids’ town. Truth be told, it’s a type foundry said to be in tune with all its emotions, also officially called Type of Feeling. Launched by the New York-based creative studio &Walsh after 5 years of development, Type of Feeling aspires to create bespoke typefaces that evoke specific emotions and moods. Each with its own distinct personality and storytelling capabilities.

What’s more—the creative dilettante and mastermind running this boutique, Jessica Walsh believes there will be a type for every designer who aspires to do a bit more. She’s a strong advocate of mental health, having launched letstalkaboutmentalhealth.com, previously, and strives to drive empathy in design. For long, Jessica has been vocal about bridging the (communication) gap with feelings. “At the core of Type of Feeling is the belief that typography has the power to communicate so much more than the words on the page,” quipped Jessica in an interview with itsnicethat.com.Take Jubel, for instance: it's inspired by the theme of a 'joyful celebration.' On the other hand, Ssonder, a sleek and refined serif, projects a more nuanced feeling – “the realization that each person you see, each person you pass, and each person that exists has their own complex and distinct life”.

Jessica’s inspiration came from her own experience as a designer. Moreover, the team had spent a great deal of time observing the current market of retail fonts. There’s an unwritten expiry date on mass-marketed and trendy fonts, and they may fail to capture the complexities of true human emotion. Jessica and the team had successfully found their sweet spot in creating broad appeal for niche and unique, emotion-driven typefaces.

Type of Feeling plans to offer a mix of retail and custom typefaces, perhaps striking an equal balance between the two. At launch, the foundry will introduce 7 typefaces, with around 30 more in store.

Jessica Walsh's sister, Lauren Walsh is leading this new venture as the managing director.

"We just really feel like it’s going to be a period where brands need to work even harder to find distinction, and we really believe in typography. We hope that we can continue to work with brands to really help them see the value . . . that typography can bring—and the longevity it can bring.”