Shantell Sans (2023)

Artist Shantell Martin has made her personal typeface, Shantell Sans, available under an open font license, enabling free use worldwide. This marks a significant step in her effort to create accessible, expressive typography rooted in her own handwriting and artistic vision.

Shantell Sans is a font inspired by Martin’s handwriting, designed to be versatile, approachable, and emotionally resonant. It incorporates variable axes for weight, italic, informality, and bounce, allowing for a wide range of styles from friendly to experimental. The font was created with input from type designer Stephen Nixon, who used Martin’s handwritten alphabet to develop the digital typeface.

Martin chose to release Shantell Sans as an open-source project, making it freely available via Google Fonts, GitHub, and other platforms. Her goal is to democratize access to her design and inspire other artists to create their own typography. Early uses include branding for the Whitney Museum shop, a Cash App product, and integrations with collaborative drawing and web-building apps like tldraw and univer.se.

Why It Matters

This release is significant because it democratizes access to a personally designed typeface, potentially influencing how fonts are used in both artistic and commercial contexts. By making Shantell Sans open source, Martin promotes inclusivity in design and encourages a broader conversation about the role of personal expression in typography. It also highlights how artists can leverage digital tools to share their work widely and impact creative communities globally.

Background

Shantell Martin is a well-known artist recognized for her large-scale murals and explorations of line work. Her interest in typography stems from her personal challenges with dyslexia and her desire to create accessible, playful fonts. The project began when Martin collaborated with type designer Stephen Nixon, who helped translate her handwriting into a digital font. The release follows her previous work integrating typography into her art and branding projects, reflecting her ongoing effort to connect art, technology, and accessibility.

“Words are drawings, and words can exist on our own terms. I wanted to make a font that feels accessible and open to remind people that words are playful and personal.”

— Shantell Martin

“Creating Shantell Sans was about blending artistic expression with functional design, making a font that’s both personal and widely usable.”

— Stephen Nixon

“By releasing Shantell Sans for free, I hope it inspires others—especially young artists—to explore typography and make their own.”

— Shantell Martin

What Remains Unclear

It is still unclear how widely Shantell Sans will be adopted in commercial projects or how it will evolve as users customize or modify it. The long-term impact of its open-source release remains to be seen, including potential new creative applications or adaptations by other artists.

What’s Next

Next steps include ongoing promotion of Shantell Sans through social media, encouraging artists and designers to experiment with it, and monitoring how it is incorporated into various projects. Further updates may include new versions or adaptations based on user feedback and creative uses.

Key Questions

Can I use Shantell Sans commercially?

Yes, Shantell Sans is released under an open font license, allowing free use for both personal and commercial projects.

Where can I access Shantell Sans?

The font is available via Google Fonts, GitHub, and other platforms where open-source fonts are hosted.

What inspired Shantell Martin to create this font?

Her personal experiences with dyslexia and her desire to make words more accessible and playful motivated her to develop a font that reflects her artistic style and philosophy.

How has Shantell Sans been used so far?

It has been used in branding for the Whitney Museum shop, on Cash App’s physical card, and by digital platforms like tldraw and univer.se for web templates.

Source: Hacker News