How Tré Seals uses Type Design to Honour Black History
To celebrate the second week of Black History Month, we’re recapping Tré Seals’ talk from DesignThinkers 2021. Tré's work is inspired by revolutionary and compelling historical events from around the world.
In May 2020, George Floyd’s death changed things for Tré. “He made me realize any work that I have done or will do at Studio Seals would never matter as much as the work I could do, or make an impact as I could do, by focusing on Vocal.’’
Tré decided to shut his consultancy, Studio Seals, in 2020 to focus his efforts on Vocal Type. Soon his work gained wide recognition, and he was receiving emails from agencies he had only dreamed of working with. Tré feels strongly that every opportunity that comes his way is not just because of him, but because of George. In this talk, he highlights a few of the typefaces that he has introduced through Vocal Type.
Type 1 - Martin
‘Martin’ was the very first font that Tré released for Vocal Type, inspired by the Memphis Sanitation Strike in 1968. Since its release, 'Martin' has been a part of many movements, including Black Lives Matter. It’s been used in California, New York, Brazil, the Netherlands and beyond.
Type 2 - Bayard
'Bayard' is a sans-serif typeface inspired by signs created during the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The font was also used to create the brand identity, website and campaign for the 2020 March on Washington that took place on the 57th anniversary of the original march.
Type 3 - Carrie
'Carrie' was inspired by the march that took place in 1915 in New York City to advocate for women's suffrage. Since this font was released, Carrie has been used in a variety of ways, on protest signs, for brand identities and more.
Type 4 - Eva
'Eva' is a font family inspired by banners from a 1957 women's demonstration in Buenos Aires. Eva has been used for Black Lives Matter protest signs and for the brand identity of a third-generation fashion brand in the United Kingdom.
