Some of the keywords associated with Jetsonville are “quirky,” “playful,” and “fun.” What exactly is it that makes Jetsonville quirky and playful and fun?
Most normal typefaces have a directional stress. It may be vertical, or it may be angled, usually to the right. You can draw parallel lines between each letter, or through the middle of each letter, to see the stress. And the repetition of the stress gives a typeface its rhythm.
This stress derives from calligraphy, when handwriting was done with a pen dipped in ink. This is what gives letters based on calligraphy their thicks and thins and the direction of the letters’ stress.
The design of Jetsonville, on the other hand, is not based on calligraphy. Instead, it is based on architecture—specifically, an arch. And that arch is based on engineering, and that engineering is based on mathematics. That gives Jetsonville a very different feel from a calligraphic typeface.
Jetsonville is based on an arch, and that arch does indeed have thicks and thins. (I am contemplating a version of Jetsonville, called Jetsonville Wire, that does not have thicks and thins—all the strokes are a uniform weight.) The original arch that Jetsonville is built from was created with an oval Illustrator brush oriented vertically. The brush was moved in the shape of the arch, and that is what gives the arch its thicks and thins.
However, Jetsonville then plays with this idea of directional stress. It plays with it by rotating the arches in different directions for different letterforms. So, looking at a line of characters in Jetsonville, there are different directional stresses in different letters going on at the same time. The A and M, for example, have the thickest part of the arch at the top of the letter form. The B and D, however, have the thickest part of the arch on the right, and the C and K have the thickest part of the arch at the left. V and W have the thickest part of the arch at the bottom. J and L have the thickest part of the arch at the lower left and lower right.The stress, and the rhythm, are all over the place.
Some people may find it unsettling. But I hope more people find it quirky, and playful, and fun.
At any rate, it’s different than a “usual” type font.
