Sawdust releases new typeface Quainton, a “blend of Didone and Bauhaus”

Graphic design studio Sawdust has launched new typeface Quainton, named after its creator, studio co-founder Jonathan Quainton. Jonathan describes the face as a blend of Didone and Bauhaus characteristics, while “taking it somewhere new”.

Jonathan began the project eight years ago in between client briefs as “a labour of love”, but it was shelved until recently when he rediscovered it while reorganising and archiving old work.

“I remember being in awe of typefaces like Bodoni and Didot at the time,” Jonathan says of his original inspiration for Quainton. “[The typeface] may come as a surprise to those familiar with our work, but part of our explorative process is looking at the past, not only the future."

“Being explorative doesn’t always mean you’re in vogue,” fellow co-founder Rob Gonzalez continues. “In fact, it can be quite the opposite, but we see this as a blessing because it means we’re not chasing the ‘cool’."

“After all that time and looking at it with fresh eyes, we felt there was something special in those initial workings and so set about finishing the design. It was interesting revisiting something that was first conceptualised eight years ago and with relatively limited understanding and experience. It seemed to us like our future selves had travelled back in time to help us finish it.”

Jonathan and Rob say they envision the font being used in fashion, retail or premium products, and in a display format as opposed to body text due to the thin strokes of the letters, but are excited because “you can never quite tell where [a typeface] will end up”.

Quainton is available through foundry HypeForType.