Responses by Edouard Berard, type designer.
Background: Sita was conceived as a versatile typographic system capable of handling complex editorial hierarchies with clarity and elegance. The font has been designed as a superfamily, offering both a serif and a sans-serif typeface that function seamlessly together as well as independently. The font is intended for designers working across a range of contexts, from intricate, multilingual editorial projects to display and art direction projects. In such contexts, the font’s character and flexibility allow it to excel in both text and titling. Sita’s objective is to provide a distinctive, articulate voice while maintaining optimal functionality.
Design thinking: The idea was to address the need for a typographic system that could offer both diversity and cohesion. Rather than designing two styles that merely coexist, I wanted them to speak the same language—sharing proportions, rhythm and structure—while expressing different tones. This approach enables fluid shifts between serif and sans within the same project, supporting rich visual storytelling without fragmentation. It was about building a toolkit that supports complexity without becoming complicated.
Challenges: Maintaining consistency across a system that spans multiple masters and styles. Because the serif and sans share a structural skeleton, every adjustment in one had consequences in the other. It was a continuous balancing act—tweaking proportions, counters or terminals to serve both sides of the family without compromising legibility or harmony. Balancing details across styles took discipline, but the process was also satisfying.
Favorite details: I’m particularly proud of the lowercase a in the serif. The way the lower bowl connects to the stem has a softness and flow that took a lot of refinement to get right. It’s a small moment, but it captures the balance I was after—between calligraphic warmth and sharpness. More broadly, I am happy about the subtle integration of calligraphic touches throughout the design and their influence on the sans serif drawing.
New lessons: One key lesson was the precision required in designing a type family at this scale. Balancing weight and contrast between serif and sans, while ensuring consistency across masters, demanded constant optical adjustments. On top of that, it was also challenging to decide whether the influence was from one model or the other. Drawing is just as important as deciding what to preserve, what to adapt and how to reinterpret historical references in a way that feels relevant today.
Visual influences: British typographic history played a key role in shaping Sita, from Caslon and Baskerville to Wilson, Thorowgood, Miller & Richard, and Stephenson Blake. However, what fascinated me most was how the visual culture of today’s United Kingdom exists in a compelling tension, embracing contemporary, experimental type design while continuing to rely heavily on historical models. Old styles, humanist sans, Ionics, moderns and early grotesques–these are not only preserved but actively reimagined in new work. There has been a noticeable resurgence of these forms. I was drawn to the idea of reviving certain formal qualities while subtly updating others—rationalizing structure, introducing warmth and stripping back excess. That interplay between old and new became central to my approach, aiming to honor the past while speaking in a present-day voice.
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