2024 – Typography Design
Lagniappe
Lagniappe celebrates the history and culture of Lafayette, Louisiana.
Lagniappe is a typeface inspired by letterforms found in Lafayette newspapers from the late 19th and early 20th centuries—a period when French was increasingly stigmatized, and francophone communities in Louisiana faced discrimination.
Drawing from these historic forms, Lagniappe preserves their unique characteristics while adapting them for contemporary use. The typeface reflects the resilience and continued evolution of the French language in Louisiana, while supporting ongoing efforts to revitalize the language and preserve the state's rich cultural and linguistic heritage.
Using digital archives from the Lafayette Public Library and the Louisiana Digital Library, dozens of historical newspaper scans were collected. Among them, a distinctive Tuscan-style display typeface repeatedly appeared in the Lafayette Gazette over several decades, serving as the primary inspiration for this project.
The original letterforms were carefully studied and reinterpreted for contemporary use while preserving their defining characteristics. The character set was expanded to include French glyphs, making the typeface fully functional in both English and French. Presenting and documenting the typeface bilingually, something the original typeface was never designed to do, reflects the resilience of Louisiana's French language and culture while supporting their continued preservation and revitalization.
After completing the character set, a bilingual type specimen was created to showcase the typeface in use. The poster features Lagniappe alongside complementary typefaces to promote real places, events, and cultural landmarks in Lafayette, Louisiana.
