Type@Cooper Display Type, Summer 2020
Harlemecc
by Jaamal Benjamin
Inspired by The Harlem Renaissance in New York City, Harlemecc is a contemporary display typeface which aims to interpret the commercial lettering of Black fine artist and painter, Aaron Douglas. Interpreted for usability, Harlemecc is a new typeface constructed for force and function by drawing influence from geometric Art Deco vernacular. Harlemecc is characterized by the idiosyncratic flavor of Aaron’s illustrations but also weighted in the dynamic expression of Blackness during the Great Migration in America.
Jaamal Benjamin
Shifting lanes from Hip-Hop dance theatre, Jaamal’s interests in design lie mostly in crafting parallels between art, culture, mark-making, social change, movement, and music. Designer and founder at Studio Grand. Jaamal is currently enrolled in Extended Program for Type Design, and has helped as a teaching assistant at The Cooper Union.
