Type Brigade Is Building Community Through a Shared Love of Typography

I’ve always been drawn to all things design (and I’ve definitely raised an eyebrow at poor kerning in the past), so when I found out about a Vancouver meetup dedicated entirely to typography, I knew I’d be just their type.

Type Brigade is a Vancouver community of more than 2,400 type designers, typographers, lettering artists and general lovers of all things type-related. Think: design lecture meets show-and-tell (minus the pretentious art jargon). This local meetup is leading the way in thoughtful design conversations (and we hope you don’t mind these font puns).

In 2014, Kenneth Ormandy and Alanna Munro took over as co-organizers and began reshaping the group into its current format—hosting free talks and workshops on typography, language and design. What started as a casual social meetup has grown into a speaker series with a conference-like feel.

More than a decade later, topics on type have gotten technical—but they stay inclusive. “We still try to present [topics] in a way where whatever level people are at, they’d be interested in attending,” says Ormandy.

After a long pandemic hiatus, Type Brigade returned in March 2024 with a new home at BCIT’s downtown campus—a flexible, open space with a massive floor-to-ceiling screen, rows of chairs, lounge-style couches and plenty of room to mingle. According to Munro, the first post-pandemic event drew about 75 attendees. By September, the group hosted one of its largest events yet, welcoming around 175 people during the Design Vancouver Festival. The strong turnout was a clear sign this community was ready to reconnect.

Feeling a bit bold, I checked out the 57th speaker series on June 27. The evening featured type designers Luis Callegari and Leo Vicenti. From designing type for global sporting events to exploring type’s influence on visual culture and Indigenous identity, the two speakers gave a glimpse into just how diverse and personal typography can be. 

Type Brigade isn’t your average design meetup. Yes it’s niche, but that’s the pt (sorry, last pun). For Callegari, a graphic designer and creative director from Argentina, it was a way to connect with Vancouver’s creative scene after moving to the city. Now, just a few events later, he’s one of the speakers. 

“I think being specific is a way to have people who have that deep level of interest know that we’re their people,” says Ormandy. 

One Type Brigade tradition is the custom numeral: a unique logo designed for each event in the speaker series. It started as something the organizers managed, but more recently, speakers have offered to take the lead on the design, collaborating with Munro and local printers to showcase new skills and techniques. For this event, Vicenti created a custom numeral titled “ashdladin gosts’idi” (“fifty-seven” in the Jicarilla Apache language) using his own type design. That same typeface was featured on red postcards handed out at the event, printed with the word “Ihéedn!” (“thank you”) with a subtly sparkly finish. 

“It just creates a nice little keepsake and a little brand for each event,” explains Munro.

Beyond the lectures, Type Brigade creates a space where design students can meet industry professionals and emerging designers practise public speaking in a low-pressure setting. Some go on to present at larger conferences or take on more public-facing design roles.

Typography might get overlooked, but that’s part of its draw. “It’s a huge part of design. We communicate through letter forms a lot as human beings,” says Munro, “But you don’t give it much thought. And when you finally do, you realize how deep you can go—it’s a deep ocean of information, techniques and psychology.”

Ormandy calls typography “the perfect visual puzzle.” Done right, it’s unnoticed. “It’s so funny that we strive really hard to make this thing invisible to people,” Munro adds, smiling.

Whether you’re a typographer, artist or just someone who’s bothered by bad breaks in restaurant menus, you’ll probably feel at home here. 

Check out this design-nerdy (but still very cool) meetup group and stay tuned for Type Brigade’s next event this fall.

Website: typebrigade.com

Instagram: @typebrigade