Typeface Review

Los Niches

Reviewed by Anna Malsberger on March 5, 2008

Like any effective ensemble, Los Niches knows when to wait in the wings, and when to take the stage.

Most of its modern monoline letterforms are stylized yet understated: sleek and elegant, but ultimately serving as a foil for the marquee talent. Flaunting unexpected loops and twists, this core cast of characters (f, t, w, Q, B, M, W, R) playfully traipses above and below the baseline with a sweet exuberance. The lowercase ‘f’ puffs out its chest with exaggerated aplomb, and ‘t’ splits into a script stem reminiscent of a table — grab a cocktail and pull up a chair to watch the show. The ampersand is discernibly ‘e’ and ‘t’, an articulation generally reserved for italic serif faces and chanceries. Its personality draws on a variety of styles, yet exercises restraint when doing so, producing a versatile typeface that’s both consistent and idiosyncratic.

Anna Malsberger a graphic designer and associate producer for filmmaker & photographer Lauren Greenfield. She also moonlights as a snowglobe collector, distance runner, and freelance writer for Print magazine.

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