SHOWCASE
TYPOGRAPHY FOR FREE USE
VALENTYN TKACHENKO
behance.net/valentyntkachenkoKiev-based graphic designer Valentyn
Tkachenko has created the Mak font,
which merges Ukrainian folk tradition
and contemporary experimental
electronic music. The font comes in light
and bold weights, but lacks a regular –
a reference to the boundary-pushing
music that inspired it.
“Mak aims to mix the historical
shapes of Ukrainian Cyrillic with
the styles of contemporary, ‘trendy’
typefaces,” says Valentyn, who chose the
name as a reference to the Ukrainian
word for the poppy flower, a key folk
symbol in Ukrainian culture. It’s also
the title of the first song he heard from
music act YUKO: the “main inspiration
of the typeface’s concept.” The free font
has a large contrast between strokes,
and is ideal as a display typeface for use
in designs such as posters, record sleeve
designs, modern branding projects, flyers
and other bold applications. “It’s a very
self-sufficient typeface,” says Valentyn.
“It’ll always stand out next to the other
elements of a design.”Valentyn Tkachenko’s Mak
font was inspired by
contemporary experimental
Ukranian musicians such
as YUKO, ONUKA and Khayat.