TYPE DESIGN INFORMATION PAGE last updated on Fri Dec 13 00:48:58 EST 2024

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ABOUT

John Vargas Beltrán

Colombian type and graphic designer (b. 1974, Bogota), who graduated from Universidad Nacional de Colombia (1997). Co-founder of ADG Colombia (Colombian Association of Graphic Designers). He was studying for a Postgraduate degree in Type Design at UBA (Universidad de Buenos Aries) in Argentina. He currently lives in BuenosAires.

Designer of the minimalist rounded display typeface Conectiva (1998), the informal signage script Salsa (2011, inspired by the old LP album covers from the 1970s), the retro comic book typeface Boogaloo (2010, free at Google Web Fonts), and the early 20th century-look face Cambalache (2008-2011). Creator with Nicolás Silva Schwarzenberg of the free upright italic sans typeface Convergence (2011, Google Web Fonts).

In 2012, Macondo---which was started in 1997---was published at Google Web Fonts, together with Macondo Swash Caps. John writes about this art nouveau pair: The forms are inspired by some illustrations created for a tarot card game, itself inspired by the work of Colombian literature Nobel prize winning author, Gabriel García Márquez, Cien Años de Soledad. Macondo won an award in the display type category at Tipos Latinos 2012.

Still in 2012, he published Germania One at Google Web Fonts---an angular typeface that is a hybrid between blackletter and sans serif, and looks like the signage on many German pubs. Cygnus (2012) is a futuristic typeface. Dulcinea Serif (2012) is an uncial typeface. Cabriolet (2012) is the standard Detroit car emblem type used on cars in the 1950s and 1960s.

In 2013, John Vargas Beltran created the fifties automobile or diner script Cabriolet V8.

In 2014, he returned to African themes, perhaps jarred by the death of Nelson Mandela. His first typeface of the year is Kalimba (named after an African percussion instrument), which comes in several textured styles called Masai, Kingombo and Nenyanga. Guadalupana (2014) is based on bronze ecclesiastical letters found in the Virgin Guadalupe basilica in Mexico, designed in 1976 by Pedro Ramirez Vazquez. Tequendama is a squarish inline typeface that is rooted in pre-Columbian pre-hispanic Muisca tribal art.

Typefaces from 2015: Muisca (a typeface family influenced by pre-Columbian pre-hispanic Muisca tribal art), Caminito (a layered steamboat family of typefaces based on the Fileteado Porteño art style in Argentina, as practiced today, e.g., by Alfredo Genovese).

Typefaces from 2016: Lucky Lady (retro signage script going back to the WWII era), Cumbanchera (based on retro cover art on Latin albums), Biscayne (a Miami art deco typeface family), Lucky Lady Script (a signage script family inspired by the old, classic art and craft of brush script lettering usually applied in ads of the WWII era and 1940s), Expreso (a layered typeface family based on squarish retro urban lettering).

Typefaces from 2017: Clair de Lune (script, for the exclusive use of Clara Dahler Design).

Typfaces from 2018: Amaretto.

Typefaces from 2020: Baggy (Cooper Black-inspired; he writes that if your uncle's moustache from 1974 was a font, this would be it).

MyFonts link. MyFonts foundry link. Behance link. Klingspor link. Creative Market link. Google Plus link.

EXTERNAL LINKS
John Vargas Beltrán
 [Buy fonts]
 [Designer info]
Fontspring link [Buy fonts]
Behance page
Creative Market page
Klingspor Museum page
MyFonts search
Monotype search
Fontspring search
Google search

INTERNAL LINKS
Colombian type design ⦿ Type designers ⦿ Type designers ⦿ Type design in Argentina ⦿ Signage typefaces ⦿ Art Nouveau typefaces ⦿ Comic/cartoon fonts ⦿ Sci-Fi fonts ⦿ African fonts ⦿ Native-American fonts ⦿ Art deco typefaces ⦿