WOBURN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Monotype Imaging Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: TYPE), a leading provider of typefaces, technology and expertise for creative applications and consumer devices, today announced support for the Arrels Foundation of Barcelona and its Homelessfonts fundraising initiative, a project centered around the licensing of fonts crafted from the handwriting of people touched directly by homelessness. Monotype is offering the initial five fonts through its e-commerce sites, with all proceeds going to the foundation to help approximately 1,400 local people affected by homelessness.
The Arrels Foundation, founded in 1987 and dedicated to helping the homeless people of Barcelona, began the Homelessfonts initiative in partnership with the advertising agency, The Cyranos McCann. The initiative aims to bring some dignity to the lives of homeless people and raise awareness of their plight by licensing the fonts to brands and agencies for use in branding, advertising, corporate messaging and social networks. Monotype is now distributing the fonts with the goal of broadening their availability worldwide – and bringing additional visibility to the cause.
“For homeless people, their own lettering which they rely upon to make signs can serve as a powerful awareness-raising tool to shed light on their difficult situation. All the participants of the Homelessfonts project were homeless, and they know the importance of being seen like persons and not like bundles. What we like most about this project is that people see there is a person behind each typeface,” said Ferran Busquets, director of the Arrels Foundation.
The fonts are based on the handwriting of five individuals who experienced homelessness and agreed to participate in the initiative. Their unique styles were captured after completing a series of writing exercises using various sheets of paper and markers of varying thicknesses. The letters were then digitized and made into fonts, which are best suited for display or headline purposes.
Doug Shaw, president and CEO of Monotype, said, “We believe that typeface designs reflect not only a unique look and feel but also stories behind their creation – and in this case, bring a level of hope and help to homeless people. We applaud the Arrels Foundation for putting a human face on this issue, and we’re proud to support it.”
Biographies and videos of the project’s participants and their work, along with further information about the initiative, are available at www.homelessfonts.org.
Each of the five fonts is available from Monotype at $49.00/ €49.00, with all proceeds going to the Arrels Foundation to support homeless people in Barcelona. The fonts may be licensed from MyFonts, Fonts.com or Linotype.com.
About the Arrels Foundation
Arrels is an organization which
since 1987 has been devoted to the attention of homeless people in the
city of Barcelona. We have accompanied through all these years more than
8.000 homeless people in their path towards autonomy, offering them
housing, meals, social attention and health care. To do our work,
we need confidence, time and a lot of support. Professionals, volunteers
and people attended become part of a team that shares a claim: Nobody
sleeping on the street!
http://www.arrelsfundacio.org/en/
About Monotype
Monotype is a leading global provider of
typefaces, technology and expertise that enable the best user experience
and ensure brand integrity. Headquartered in Woburn, Mass., Monotype
provides customers worldwide with typeface solutions for a broad range
of creative applications and consumer devices. The company’s libraries
and e-commerce sites are home to many of the most widely used typefaces
– including the Helvetica®,
Frutiger®
and Univers®
families – as well as the next generation of type designs. Further
information is available at www.monotype.com.
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Monotype, Helvetica and Frutiger are trademarks of Monotype Imaging Inc. registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be registered in certain jurisdictions. Univers is a trademark of Monotype GmbH registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be registered in certain jurisdictions. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ©2014 Monotype Imaging Holdings Inc. All rights reserved.
