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University Marketing and Communications

Typography impacts meaning and interpretation.

Typography in graphic design can strongly affect how people react to a document. Careful selection and consistent use of a chosen typeface can be just as important as the use of graphics, color and images in creating and solidifying a professional brand.

The skillful use of typography commands the attention of your desired audience, communicates a key idea and motivates them to take action. Typography is not just about legibility. It is a blending of art and science and can serve a functional purpose.

 

Primary Typefaces

We’ve chosen two modern, open-source (free) serif and sans-serif typeface families that have been adapted for the digital age (but are also suitable for print) — Roboto by Google, Inc. and Merriweather by Eben Sorkin of Sorkin Type, Co. Both typefaces were designed to be highly-readable on screens and contain a full set of weights, styles and variants.

 

 

“Typography is the craft of endowing human language with a durable visual form.”

- ROBERT BRINGHURST, TYPOGRAPHER/AUTHOR

 

Font Substitutes

Font substitution is the process of using one font in place of another when the intended font either isn’t available or doesn’t contain glyphs for the required characters. The following alternative fonts may be used when the primary university typefaces are not available for use in certain digital applications, devices or platforms.

 

Alternatives to Roboto

Arial, Arial Black, Helvetica, Segoe UI, San Francisco

Regular, Italic and Bold

Alternatives to Merriweather

Georgia

Regular, Italic, Bold and Bold Italic