Polymode

@elizabeth_goodspeed questions the idea of neutrality in typographic forms, exploring how cultural and political associations of form change over time and context in her essay “Big Neutrals” from the book Identity Is Variable, our new collaboration with @polymodestuido , out now (link in bio, as always).

Tomorrow at 11am in San Diego, XYZ Type partner Jesse Ragan will give a free talk at UCSD, open to the public. “What is Realness?” will discuss XYZ’s collaboration with @polymodestudio on developing Polymode Sans and their recently-published book, Identity Is Variable. Hope to see you there! May 12, 2026, 11:00 am University of California San Diego Design and Innovation Building Second Floor Room 208 9510 Innovation Ln La Jolla, CA 92093 @ucsdvisarts @ucsandiego

Join us for Day 2 of the 2026 LA Art Book Fair! Visit us at Table G22 today through Sunday. We’d love to see you there. @printedmatter_artbookfairs ! #laabf2026 Fair Hours Friday, May 8 — 11 AM–7 PM Saturday, May 9 — 11 AM–7 PM Sunday, May 10 — 11 AM–6 PM Featured Publications • Data Consciousness: Reframing Blackness in Contemporary Print, edited by @tiffanyebarber for @printcenternewyork • Identity is Variable, a publication by @xyz_type (@seriousletterforms , @ben_kiel ) and Polymode (@siborg81 , @brianpolymode , @bnwrnr , @_randahadi , @krisnuzz ) • Reverberations: Lineages in Design History at the @fordfoundationgallery — available FREE through a daily raffle • A newly designed @bipocdesignhistory zine by @chronictanvi and @_randahadi . Printed by @martian.press • Additional recent publications on display and available at other booths, including MONUMENTS @moca @thebrick_la and more recent titles

@saucyunicorn , @booby_be , and @mindyseu discuss what queer typography means today, their connections and community, and the ins and outs of publishing in their interview in Identity Is Variable, our new book collaboration with @polymodestudio , out now (goods.xyztype.com or via XYZ Type bio)

Identity is Variable is now stocked by @arcanabooks in Culver City @xyz_type

I’m excited to share this collaboration with @polymodestudio and @xyz_type on Identity is Variable: a collection of essays, interviews and reflections on identity and typography. It was such a treat getting to design this book and read amazing, thoughtful essays by designers I’ve looked up to for the last decade of my career. Identity Is Variable explores the intimate connections between who we are and how we express ourselves through type. Design studios XYZ Type and Polymode collaborated to invite fifteen diverse voices from the design world to discuss the ways their personal and cultural identities resonate with typography, through personal narratives, critical essays, and lively conversations. Contributors include artist-technologist Mindy Seu, designer-writer Elizabeth Goodspeed, multidisciplinary artist Diana Guerrero-Maciá, designer-poet Sadie Red Wing, and collaborative studio WORK/PLAY. Collectively, the twelve entirely original pieces in the book underscore the fact that typography is never neutral, but rather deeply personal and political. Now available on @drawdownbooks Edited by Brian Johnson, Ben Kiel, Silas Munro, and Jesse Ragan Copy edited by Stephanie Schlaifer Design by Polymode and Ben Warner

Lecture this Wednesday at UCLA! Silas Munro (@siborg81 ) of @polymodestudio will present with Ben Kiel (@ben_kiel ) and Jesse Ragan (@seriousletterforms ) of XYZ Type about their collaboration to bring notions of expansive identity into typographic form, as well as their newly published book Identity Is Variable. Hope to see you there!

Join us for the Los Angeles launch of Identity Is Variable, an evening exploring the deep connection between personal identity and typography with Silas Munro and Jesse Ragan. The night includes a panel moderated by Dori Tunstall, joined by Randa Hadi, diving into how culture and identity shape typographic expression. Featuring the release of Polymode Sans and the new publication Identity Is Variable, with books available for purchase after the talk. Free with RSVP — link in bio to reserve your spot. #Typography #DesignTalk #LosAngelesEvents #GraphicDesign #TypeDesign

This is also the last chance to experience Monuments—on view through May 3rd at The Brick (@thebrick_la ) and the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (@moca ). Co-curated by Hamza Walker (Director of The Brick), artist Kara Walker (Kara_Walker_Official), and Bennett Simpson (Senior Curator, MOCA), along with Associate Curator Hannah Burstein (@hannahbursting ) and Assistant Curator Paula Kroll (@paulakroll ) the exhibition brings together decommissioned monuments alongside contemporary artworks as a powerful reflection on memory and how these structures were built to mythologize history and uphold systems of power. Contemporary artists respond with critical reflection and visual counter points. Polymode designed the exhibition catalogue and website, with the museum and the Brick extending that visual language into their title wall and exhibition graphics. If you are in LA this is not to be missed! Designed by: @siborg81 , @_randahadi , @brianpolymode , @on.michellephone @masato_nakada

We’re excited to share a first look at the cover design for Monuments, created to accompany the exhibition at The Brick (@thebrick_la ) and the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA (@moca ). Published by DelMonico Books (@delmonico_books ). Designed by Polymode, the publication leans into typography as structure, mass, and presence. We chose Jubalt by Darden studios (@dardenstudiofonts ), a sturdy slab serif that echoes the monument bases designed by a Black type designer and Louize, Louize Display, and Louize Display Cond by 205TF (@205tf )— because it carries both elegance and authority. The bold typographic system gives the catalogue a palpable physical weight, echoing the exhibition’s engagement with monumentality, memory, and power. This monumental show pairs removed Confederate monuments with contemporary art to explore how history is constructed—and contested. Designed by: @siborg81 , @_randahadi , @brianpolymode , @on.michellephone . Co-curated by Hamza Walker, Kara Walker (@kara_walker_offical ), and Bennett Simpson, Hannah Burstein (@hannahbursting ), and Paula Kroll (@paulakroll ).

What a night in NYC last Thursday! @seriousletterforms and @brianpolymode celebrated the XYZ Type / @polymodestudio book launch by sharing the stage with @saucyunicorn , @davidjonwalker , and @natpyper for an unfiltered conversation about personal identity and typography. Many thanks to @aigany and @madmuseum for being great hosts and to all the panelists for wearing your hearts on your sleeves. A last-minute binding problem held up the shipping of our new book Identity Is Variable. The box arrived from the printer just before the event, so Brian and Jesse unboxed them right there with the audience and shared initial reactions to seeing the book as a real physical object for the first time. (It smells so good!) Happy to say that the audience eagerly bought up the whole first box, so Jesse didn’t have to lug them home afterward. You can now order your own copy at goods.xyztype.com

If you were in NY and attended our AIGA lecture last week, thank you for joining us! Polymode and BIPOC Design History will now be on the other coast at this year’s LA Art Book Fair for the first time! We’ll be bringing a zine created by our @bipocdesignhistory team, and a selection of books we’ve designed, including our newest collaboration with @xyz_type , Identity is Variable: Essays, Interviews, & Reflections on Identity and Typography, featuring contributions from Elizabeth Goodspeed, Diana Guerrero-Maciá, nicole killian, Kyle Letendre, Saki Mafundikwa, Ziddi Msangi, Duy Nguyễn, Be Oakley, Sadie Red Wing, Mindy Seu, Chris Skillern, Kruttika Susarla, David Jon Walker, and WORK/PLAY. Come visit us at Table G22—we’d love to see you there. #LAABF2026 @printedmatter_artbookfairs @siborg81 @brianpolymode @_randahadi @opentab.research @emmawag.des @chronictanvi @krisnuzz @sadeemyacoub @3dgar.c @elizabeth_goodspeed @diana.guerrero.macia @saucyunicorn , @heykyle @sakimaf @ziddimsangi @duy___n @booby_be @sadieredwing @mindyseu @tulseytype @kruttika @davidjonwalker @work_play