220412_LEXEND-BOARD_CANNES

How dyslexia-friendly fonts are rewriting the book

We talk to the team behind Lexend, a typeface that is making reading easier for those with dyslexia, and explore whether all fonts should be designed with accessibility in mind

Be honest, how do you feel when you see Comic Sans? Angry? Nauseous? Superior? If you have dyslexia you might just feel relieved.

According to the British Dyslexia Association, more than one in ten people are influenced by dyslexia and this can create issues with phonological processing (being able to identify the smallest sound – such as a single vowel sound), rapid naming, working memory, processing speed, and reading speed comprehension. Many experts claim that Comic Sans, and other fonts like it, are better for people with dyslexia thanks to their irregularity.

A campaign – There’s Nothing Comic About Dyslexia – at the end of last year from Dyslexia Scotland, Innocean Berlin, and WeTransfer for Dyslexia Awareness Month looked to change perceptions via a series of humorous ads (‘Let’s give fontsplaining a rest, shall we?’ ‘Never judge a menu by its font’, and so on). Dyslexia Scotland also partnered with designer Daniel Brokstad to design a new dyslexia-friendly font, Inconstant Regular.

Lately, there’s been a real move towards dyslexia-friendly fonts. This has to do with a broader recognition and awareness of inclusive design in the general public and within businesses, says Philipp Muhlebach, executive creative director of Superunion in Germany, which has worked with Google Fonts on a groundbreaking project, Lexend, to design an online, free, open-source, variable-font solution.

dyslexia-scotland-theres-nothing-comic-about-dyslexia-graphic-design-its_blSiCPf
From the There’s Nothing Comic About Dyslexia campaign for Dyslexia Scotland by Innocean Berlin and WeTransfer