Proximity

Proximity originated as a custom-designed italic font for PROXIMA, a collaborative studio for creative direction and production in live music, based in Barcelona. Rooted in PROXIMA’s ethos of collaboration, process, and temporality, the font reflects the studio’s mission to design ephemeral atmospheres through collective work tailored to each project. The studio values connection, dialogue, and care in curating creative teams, principles that inspired the conceptual foundation of the typeface: a pixel grid symbolising individual elements that, when connected, form complex and meaningful structures, i.e. communities that are greater than the sum of their parts. While it begins as a pixel-based font, Proximity evolves into a broader type system comprising six additional families: two formed by horizontal and vertical lines, two that merge all pixels into continuous fluid shapes, and two expressive outlined styles that maximise visual variety. Beneath its pixelated surface lies the framework of a refined, highly versatile serif typeface with distinctive details, one that breaks free from the tropes of 8-bit and computerised aesthetics often associated with this modular approach and bridges them with the sophistication and nuance of classical typography. Designed for clarity and uniqueness at any size, the typeface spans three weights with matching italics, and it’s available in both static and variable formats, each cut coming with an adjustable pixel size for precise typographic control and great potential for animated content.