The Geometry of Readability
Marjolein Jansen has spent twelve years refining grotesque and humanist typefaces for editorial and digital environments. Her latest release for LetterLab, the three-weight family Meridian Grotesk, bridges Swiss precision with organic stroke modulation. We sat down with Jansen at her Rotterdam studio to discuss her methodology, the tension between algorithmic generation and hand-hinting, and why she believes type design remains a deeply tactile discipline.
LetterLab: Meridian Grotesk features distinctly open apertures and an x-height that sits 14% higher than your previous Amsterdam Sans collection. What drove that shift?
Marjolein Jansen: When we started scanning legacy posters from the 1970s Dutch design movement, I noticed how designers like Wim Crouwel and Martin Moonen prioritized legibility at extreme sizes. Meridian needed to perform equally well at 10px on a mobile viewport and 400pt on a transit poster. We adjusted the counter-spacing and tightened the kerning pairs manually across 430 glyphs. The algorithm only handles the master interpolation; the rhythm is entirely human.
LetterLab: Your process involves extensive grid work before any Bezier curve is drawn. How do you balance mathematical consistency with visual harmony?
Marjolein Jansen: The grid is a starting point, not a constraint. I use a 20-module baseline system, but optical corrections always override strict geometry. For example, the uppercase O in Meridian tilts 2.5 degrees on the vertical axis to compensate for the eye’s natural perception of round shapes. If you force perfect mathematical symmetry, the typeface feels dead. Readers don’t see coordinates; they feel weight distribution.
LetterLab: LetterLab’s community has been asking about variable font support and axis tuning. What can designers expect?
Marjolein Jansen: We’ve exposed four axes: weight, width, optical size, and a custom contrast axis that modulates stem thickness relative to x-height. The variable build is optimized for web rendering with sub-pixel anti-aliasing baked into the hinting instructions. We tested it across Chrome, Safari, and Firefox on both Retina and 4K displays. The goal is zero layout shift during font loading. I want designers to trust the typeface instantly, without fiddling with fallback stacks.