Ambivalence magazine, issue 01, “On Spaces”

Ambivalence magazine is a new independent print-only publication out of Amsterdam. It will deal with one topic in each issue, with the first issue focused “On Space(s)”. A handful of artists, photographers, illustrators and writers created artwork inquiring what spaces mean to them.

As the content of the magazine variates vastly, I looked for a bold typeface for the headers to tie all the pages together. I used Knockout (Junior Sumo) for large headers stretching over the spreads which helped to connect the narrative of the magazine, as all the headlines speak about some kind of space. As Knockout is inspired by American wooden typefaces and thus perfect for setting large, it fitted well with the purpose. The large headlines should give an indication of what the pages are about, and remind the reader of the internet – Knockout is used a lot online, lately. As Knockout has different weights, I can expand its usage as the magazine gets more complex and develops further.

For the body text I chose Acherus Grotesque Regular and Italic, as I wanted a solid sans serif that would look good in different weights or sizes, and also when being used in white against a black/colored background. Acherus is a geometric font with rounded angles, which gives it a softer, more humanist touch, helping to convey a harmonious aesthetic of the magazine.