30. Leipziger Typotage 2026—The Sound of Type

Can type be heard? With this question, the 30th Typotage at the Museum für Druckkunst Leipzig opened a weekend that approached typography through listening. Under the title Schrift und Klang. The Sound of Type, the focus shifted to the acoustic, musical, and linguistic qualities of type, and to the idea that typography can touch, irritate, and connect.

The opening performance Where Type Becomes Sound already reframed the familiar perspective. Rather than presenting finished forms, it foregrounded the act of making. Machines, materials, and movement became the language itself. Typography appeared as a physical process that could be heard, structured by rhythm and resistance.

Saturday expanded this line of thought. The Sisters of Design demonstrated in Typo Utopia how Bauhaus-related ideas can unfold within spatial and multisensory installations. Ivo Brouwer approached type through jazz, understanding design as an open and variable system shaped by improvisation. Heike Schnotale added a historical perspective and traced the close relationship between musical notation and writing.

With Re:Vision Sound & Vision, Friedrich Althausen brought this relationship into the present. His app Sonatype uses AI to translate sound into visual structures, proposing a synaesthetic approach in which type reacts to and makes sound perceptible.

In the afternoon, student projects continued the exploration in experimental directions. Malin Neamtu presented Segmentor, a typeface that responds in real time to drum input. August Guccione explored the tension between hearing and seeing in Parameter A, translating sound into abstract variations of the letter A. Simon Bode introduced a custom tool that transforms music directly into typographic animation, creating a dynamic, parameter-based relationship between sound and form.

Sabrina Öttl shifted the focus to the effect of type itself, emphasizing that typography is never neutral and always carries its own voice shaped by form and context. Alessio Leonardi concluded with a reflection on pauses and absence, suggesting that meaning often emerges through rhythm, interruption, and what remains unsaid.

The 30th edition of Typotage made clear that typography extends beyond the visual. It can sound, respond, and create atmosphere. Perhaps it was never silent. We are already looking forward to Typotage 2027.

Meta-Whitespace

〈Meta-Whitespace〉 begins from the flow of consciousness and asks whether blankness is ever truly blank. Using whitespace characters, CSS padding, blur and speech recognition, it creates spaces that are not spaces, like the mind itself. Letters become blanks at random, and spoken text dissolves into whitespace. Borrowing the absurd speech of the Doeokshini, a race in Lee Youngdo’s epic The Bird That Drinks Tears, the work imagines language before meaning and turns the reader into a being of gaps.

A Story Converging to Zero

〈A Story Converging to Zero〉 explores summarization as translation. Inspired by Alvin Lucier’s I Am Sitting in a Room, it treats meaning as something altered through repetition, compression, and loss. Using The Blue Cross—a detective story whose linear plot builds suspense through one character’s perspective and moves toward solving a case—the webpage presents 20 horizontal paragraphs that readers compress from sentences to words to a single word, gradually converging toward zero.

The Work’s Lifespan

How long does a work last? Inspired by Foundation, Q.E.D.’s “Jacob’s Ladder,” and three versions of one long name—the rakugo original Jugemu (寿限無), its Korean adaptation Suhanmu, and a line from Hideaki Sorachi’s manga Gin Tama—this web work links language, time, and mortality. As viewers speak the name aloud, the corresponding letters disappear, and when the text is fully erased, the timer stops. At that moment, the work’s lifespan is determined. Two new versions are then randomly revived.

Unseen

〈Unseen〉 reinterprets the Japanese drama Shiman through punctuation, code syntax, and the perspective of a blind masseur. Based on research into both the drama and its rakugo source, the work reduces the story to a single sentence structured by redefined marks such as (), {}, [], and quotation marks. Though vividly red, these marks may remain unread, becoming a form of the unseen: visible signs whose meaning escapes perception.

It’s Totally Okay to Do Nothing

“It’s Totally Okay to Do Nothing” explores uncertainty through text. Inspired by Samuel Beckett’s Quad and quantum mechanics, it begins from the idea that even what we see is unstable. In the installation, the lyrics from Jang Ki-ha’s song are written repeatedly, while viewers type lyrics they cannot see and the projected text changes at random. The work turns writing into an event of slippage, where audience intervention reveals the gap between intention, perception, and certainty.

Vague Thoughts

A work for the Korean Society of Typography’s Exhibition. “The Typesetter’s Bridge” stirs a strange kind of curiosity. Searching for a way to quench that curiosity, I decided to wander into an offbeat imagination. I wrote “Vague Thoughts”, a sequel to “The Typesetter’s Bridge”, and set it in type, presenting it in the form of a poster. I hope those who encounter this poster will linger over “The Typesetter’s Bridge” and “Vague Thoughts” and try their own hand at unraveling the mystery.

a small home in seoul

A magazine editor’s seven-year journey of renovating a 50-year-old apartment in Seoul. He explores what it means to live “properly” within limited resources.
This nonfiction work, featuring 12 appendices like architect dialogues and material guides, gained fame on Elle and “No Filter TV,” and was exhibited at the Gwangju Design Biennale. It serves as a profound reflection on 21st-century Seoul housing, proving that designing one’s space is ultimately an act of reconstructing oneself.

Trajectories: bandpass

The sound of 〈Trajectories: bandpass〉 translates the sonic qualities shaped and varied through form, using the album 《Slough and Trajectory: spiral horizontaly world》 and the performance 《Trajectories》 as source. Latex (which covered the floor of the performance hall) was woven and covered over a steel frame, and speakers were placed inside. The work is to connect the sculpture as a human body, the memory of the performance, and the spatial sense of sound.

*Collaboration with Yongbin Lee

Korean Chronicles 3

To mark the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between France and South Korea — a major milestone celebrating a friendship that began on 4 June 1886 — the French artists’ collective TELESCOPIQUE® has produced a special series of 625 digital prints.

barriers

This work originates from the word barriers, selected from a list of restricted terms during the Trump administration. The restriction of this word resonated with the designer’s experience of language barriers as a Korean graphic designer studying abroad. Through slow analogue repetition using typewriting and ink rolling, positioned against the speed and efficiency often linked with Korean culture, the word shifts from readable language into a dense surface.

CONTEMPORARFY HYEROGLYPHS SEOUL

Created during the 2025 Seoul Street Art Festival, this work channels the city’s unique energy—its pulse, speed, food culture, and musical rhythm. Using his “Contemporary Hieroglyphs” style, the artist transforms Seoul’s movement and emotion into a universal visual code, expanding his ongoing exploration of how cities shape human expression.

Vine Extra Color Euljiro Open

This work presents a graphic announcing the opening of Vine Extra Color Euljiro, located on the second floor of In the Paper Euljiro by Doosung Paper. Through the visualization of the actual printer and fluorescent colors rendered as paint, the work conveys the characteristics of a print studio specialized in both standard and fluorescent printing within a single image. Lettering at the top reflects the context of Euljiro, Seoul, reinforcing a sense of place.

The Name Of My Lover

This poster is based on impressions from the song “The Name Of My Lover” 1987 by Lee Jae Min. Although more than 30 years have passed since its release, the track still conveys a cyberpunk like atmosphere, leaving a striking and unfamiliar impression beyond simple nostalgia.
The work develops from this perception, visually exploring the intersection of 1980s retro mood, cyberpunk imagination, and Korean sensibility. This poster is not an official release, but a reinterpretation of the music.

Point Of View

This work presents the poster key visual for the 34th Kyungpook National University Fashion Design Graduation Show.

Under the theme POV Point of View, the show features 31 student designers expressing their perspectives through fashion. Focusing on how multiple viewpoints come together to shape perception, the design adopts an ASCII art approach to visualize this concept. Fluorescent pink is used to emphasize points of focus and guide the viewer’s gaze.

Paper by Paper 2nd Exhibition

This work is the poster for the second edition of 《Paper by Paper》, following the first exhibition held in 2025 at Inthepaper Euljiro in Seoul, South Korea. It was invited to the ‹2025 Gwangju Printing Culture Day› and exhibited at the Gwangju Printing Business Center.
The exhibition explores the possibilities of paper through various special stocks, employing diverse printing methods such as fluorescent toner and white ink to propose new visual outcomes for each material.

ONE WAY

This work begins with the question what sustains the act of designing. It defines the answer as pure curiosity, an instinctive attraction without clear reason. Like a child drawing, design continues on its own, independent of external conditions. This idea is expressed as a single direction and visualized through road and signage graphics. It was presented in the poster exhibition 《Baton Touch》 in Busan, South Korea, in 2025.

Metal Pack Board

Centered on self-objectification, the work uses Metal Pack Board, applying a matte coating to all areas except the mirrored graphic. This allows viewers to see their reflection within the exposed surface. The piece reflects everyday introspection and is composed of geometric forms that emphasize the contrasts of silver.
It was presented as part of the 《Paper by Paper》 exhibition at Inthepaper Euljiro in 2025.

Golden Ratio

This work begins with the deconstruction and reconstruction of the golden ratio 1:1.618. Based on the proportional structure formed by dividing a whole into two parts, quarter circles are repeatedly applied.

Building on this structure, images of quarter circles found in everyday life are captured on film and overlaid as graphics, forming a visual composition of the golden ratio.

Dubai Chewy Cookie

Dubai Chewy Cookie
Dubai Chewy Cookie combines the 2024 trend of Dubai chocolate with a chewy cookie texture. It gained popularity from 2025 and remains high priced and widely favored as of 2026.
This work visualizes the novelty of this trend as a poster. The mix of Dubai chewy and cookie reflects a fusion of languages and cultures expressed through title typography. Its small size yet high price is reinterpreted as a refined dish, emphasized with fork and knife imagery.

백로 (Baekro)

백로 (Baekro) is the fifteenth of the twenty four seasonal divisions, referring to White Dew. It occurs at a solar longitude of 165 degrees, around September 7, when autumn deepens and dew forms on grass.

In this work, instead of dew, pomegranate, a seasonal fruit, is used to introduce a different color approach. The twenty four divisions are arranged in sequence, revealing the temporal position of Baekro.

만변

This work presents the key visual design for the Youth Group 1 summer retreat of Deokso Church in Namyangju, South Korea. The theme “만변” stands for the phrase meaning one does not change without meeting, and the design reflects ideas of transformation, absorption, and the merging of two into one.
The tilted and rotating lettering conveys a sense of change in motion, while the graphic imagery visualizes the transformed state of a church member.

Typography Meets Teaching

Lars Harmsen successfully combines theory and practice in the world of design. As the co-founder and publisher of Slanted Publishers, as well as partner and Creative Director at Melville Brand Design, he brings extensive experience, which he passes on to his students as professor of Typography and Editorial Design at Fachhochschule Dortmund–University of Applied Sciences and Arts.

What motivated you to become a professor?

I became a professor to pass on my experience and out of gratitude for the guidance I was given. During my training at an agency, I benefited from great support. While I studied in Basel and Pforzheim, I met inspiring professors who introduced me to the world of American design and the digital future. These experiences motivated me to share my knowledge with the next generation. I particularly appreciate the interdisciplinary teaching and creative freedom at Fachhochschule Dortmund. My practical experience from working in both an agency and a publishing house feeds directly into my teaching, helping me conduct a kind of reality check.

What is it like working in the Faculty of Design?

As a professor, I work with young people as equals. This collaborative relationship is the main reason why I find teaching at the university so exciting and enriching. These interactions not only keep me on my toes, but also reflect different perspectives back to me. I find it fascinating to observe how students think, what they learn here and how they apply it.

Why did you apply to Fachhochschule Dortmund?

I deliberately applied to universities that offer more than just a single design degree program. I am interested in interdisciplinary exchange, and as a graphic designer I want insights into fields such as film or scenography. At Fachhochschule Dortmund, I found the rich mix I was looking for. I also wanted to apply to a university in a city that is not constantly in the spotlight like Berlin or Munich but instead offers growth potential. Dortmund has established itself as an outstanding location for exhibitions and events.

You founded an agency and are the publisher of a magazine. Can you pass this entrepreneurial spirit on to your students?

Yes, with mixed feelings. After I completed my studies, I made the mistake of not working at a large agency first to build a network. However, going independent early on taught me to work autonomously and gave me a sense of freedom and pride. Many students prefer to start their own business straight after graduation, often out of fear of being stuck in a rat race and in search of a better work-life balance. I think it depends on the individual: some benefit from gaining experience and building a network before becoming self-employed. I recommend thinking carefully about this step.

How do you manage to balance your professional and personal life while also being involved in other projects?

I’m able to do this by working with partners across all my projects instead of doing everything on my own.

How do you approach your teaching?

I design every day because I love it and because it helps me expand and pass on my knowledge. I also enjoy traveling and organizing excursions with my students. These intensive experiences in different cultural contexts are extremely enriching. I believe it is important to take students out of Dortmund and offer them new perspectives.

What makes your teaching special?

The publishing house I have built over the past 20 years enjoys international recognition and offers numerous collaborations with students. These connections between teaching and publishing are very valuable.

How important is research to you?

Research holds great importance for me. Each issue of Slanted explores aspects of research. I also believe it is esssential to take a historical perspective in order to better understand future developments. A central aspect of my research is the creative use of tools. By questioning their original function and using them in new ways, new possibilities emerge. For example, it is possible to design a poster using Excel. This kind of experimentation is fun and fosters innovative approaches in design.

What do you think the future of your field looks like?

I believe we need to approach curricula more flexibly, as cycles continue to accelerate. Internationalization is crucial, and there is still room for growth in this area at our university, for example through English-taught degree programs. We should also move away from traditional tools and adapt our teaching methods to the pace of the digital age. It is important that students develop critical thinking skills and learn to question content. They also need inner strength to cope with the challenges of rapid change.

Additional information on professorships at Fachhochschule Dortmund – University of Applied Sciences and Arts can be found here.

Image Credits:
FH Dortmund, Campus Max-Ophüls-Platz, Fachbereich Design
Portrait Lars Harmsen
Workshop Prag
Workshop Prag, Saeeda Shabbir
ARTHELPS
Laura Lipinski
Im flüstern der wellen
Konterfrei Reinhard
Wundertüte, Hannah Baumann, Lars Allenberg
Siebdruck Workshop Graz