• Pia

OC Pía

An experimental font based on a three year old's handwriting. Download it, have a play, make something fun, it's free.

Coming soon(ish)

Download

Get the full font for print and web, free for personal and commercial use.

Source Material

reference three year old handwriting
[1]

In use

[2]
[3]
[4]
alternates stylistic sets
[5]
[6]
[7]
[8]
[9]

Overview

This is an uppercase only font with different designs for each letter of the alphabet on the upper and lowercase of the keyboard. Certain characters that are often repeated in words have multiple stylistic alternates to add variation.

Highlights: four bars on the E, the gap between the bowl and the leg on the R, the loop in the W and I with circle tittle.
Basic punctuation and figures that are outside of a toddler's repertoire are substituted with a subverted serif; a deliberate juxtaposition of styles.

Figures are a faux "old style" to fit better with the irregular vertical positioning of the hand rendered alphabet.
The font has accents for Western European languages. More advanced characters (as with figures and punctuation) are included as a traditional but subverted serif.

References

  1. Scans I’ve collected of Pía’s writing that were used as the source material for the font. 
  2. Richard Hell and the Voidoids photographed by Roberta Bayley.
  3. “From childhood, we’re trained to be a certain way, to behave a certain way – so that the power base can control us, really. And punk and drag are completely outside of that.”
    RuPaul.
  4. Riot grrrl is a subcultural movement that combines feminism, punk music and politics. Photo of Ari Up performing live in 1977 by music photographer Ian Dickson.
  5. An example showing how upper and lowercase as well as stylistic alternates can be used to prevent visual repetition of characters when setting copy.
  6. “The most important thing you can do on this planet is become the realization of your own imagination…Fulfillment isn’t found over the rainbow—it’s found in the here and now. Today I define success by the fluidity with which I transcend emotional land mines and choose joy and gratitude instead.”
    RuPaul.
  7. Palmolive, of The Slits rehearsing at a squat in Daventry Street London, NW1, 1977 photo by Julian Yewdall.
  8. “I believe in using all the colors in the crayon box.”
    RuPaul
  9. In Brian De Palma’s film Scarface (1983), Tony Montana sees the phrase “The World Is Yours” on an airship advertising Pan American Airlines. Tony takes that phrase to heart and makes the world his by reaching the top of the drug trade.
    Mathieu Kassovitz’s film La Haine (1995) repeatedly references this phrase  through the use of a billboard that has an image of the globe with the caption “Le Monde Est À Vous” (“The World Is Yours” in French). Toward the end of the film Said spray paints out the V of Vous and replaces it with an N to make Nous, changing the phrase to “The World is Ours”.