Buy It
Buy It
A signal
from
somewhere
else.

Designer

Michael Cina

2022

Chrysalis is a display typeface with the feeling of a transmission. Familiar enough to read on first glance, strange enough to stay with you on the second. The forms carry a sense of having been somewhere before they got here.

Family Size

5 Styles

Features

20 stylistic sets, Greek support, multiple figure styles, ligatures, and character alternates.

Character sets

Latin Extended. ~480 glyphs per weight. 152 languages.

Licensing

Desktop/Print, Web, Content, App/Game, Logo/Wordmark, Core Media, All Media. Custom License Available.

Formats

OTF, WOFF2, Variable (based on license type)

 
Regular
Shuffle
Chrysalis/AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz
1234567890!@#$%
 
Shuffle
Chrysalis/AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJjKkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSsTtUuVvWwXxYyZz
1234567890!@#$%

Chrysalis is a geometric display typeface in five weights with twenty stylistic sets, drawn as a system where letters share parts and the alternates extend the family into many different typefaces.

Variable type description

Variable type description

Chrysalis Standard Variable
Axis
0
AaBbCc01234567890!@#$%^&*()
AaBbCc01234567890!@#$%^&*()
Chrysalis Standard Variable
Axis
0
AaBbCc01234567890!@#$%^&*()
AaBbCc01234567890!@#$%^&*()
Chrysalis

Five weights. Greek. Twenty Stylistic Sets.

 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Old world, new type.

 
Regular

Old world, new type.

 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Recognizable, not from here.

 
Regular

Recognizable, not from here.

 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Quiet, but not empty.

 
Regular

Quiet, but not empty.

Chrysalis carries the discipline of Armin Hofmann and Swiss Style: small vocabulary, clean shapes, trust in the spaces between forms.
Chrysalis carries the discipline of Armin Hofmann and Swiss Style: small vocabulary, clean shapes, trust in the spaces between forms.
Letters drawn from a vocabulary of angles and parts. Diagonals repeat making patterns emerge.
Letters drawn from a vocabulary of angles and parts. Diagonals repeat making patterns emerge.
Inherited from a world older than typography: alphabets built from a symbolic system.
Inherited from a world older than typography: alphabets built from a symbolic system.
 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

FONT WEIGHTS ARE NOT WORKING HERE

 
Regular

FONT WEIGHTS ARE NOT WORKING HERE

 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Alternates are part of the design.

 
Regular

Alternates are part of the design.

 
Regular
Size
200
Leading
0.90
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Atmosphere is a real specification.

 
Regular

Atmosphere is a real specification.

 
Regular
Size
72
Leading
1.00
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Chrysalis is a geometric display typeface in five weights with twenty stylistic sets, drawn as a system where letters share parts and the alternates extend the family into many different typefaces. Drawn in five weights with twenty stylistic sets and full Latin and Greek support.

 
Regular

Chrysalis is a geometric display typeface in five weights with twenty stylistic sets, drawn as a system where letters share parts and the alternates extend the family into many different typefaces. Drawn in five weights with twenty stylistic sets and full Latin and Greek support.

 
Regular
Size
28
Leading
1.15
Tracking
0.000em
OT Features
No features available

Chrysalis is a typographic system that produces many results. Each alternate set swaps in different constructions of the same letters, turning one font into what feels like several typefaces. One family, many alphabets. The system is what makes all the stylistic sets work. Letters are built from a shared vocabulary of angles and parts. That shared construction is the structure that holds the full typeface together, and it is what lets the alternates read as members of the same family rather than as different fonts. The construction follows Greek logic. Not a revival of any specific Greek typeface, but the older habit of building alphabets from a small set of shapes that recombine across letters. Latin often draws each letter as its own problem, while Greek does not. That structure is what Chrysalis inherited, and Greek script support was drawn alongside the Latin because the family had been “thinking in” Greek from the start. The lineage is Swiss. Armin Hofmann sits underneath the drawing, alongside Max Bill and Roger Ferriter. Chrysalis carries their discipline more than their look. Five weights, twenty stylistic sets. The sets play a big part in the overall design. A designer can pick one set, combine several, or move between them, and the family holds together across the choices. Chrysalis is a display font, drawn to work on posters, wordmarks, covers, and large-format identity. Multilingual identity work sits inside the family. Latin and Greek drawn as one voice.

 
Regular

Chrysalis is a typographic system that produces many results. Each alternate set swaps in different constructions of the same letters, turning one font into what feels like several typefaces. One family, many alphabets. The system is what makes all the stylistic sets work. Letters are built from a shared vocabulary of angles and parts. That shared construction is the structure that holds the full typeface together, and it is what lets the alternates read as members of the same family rather than as different fonts. The construction follows Greek logic. Not a revival of any specific Greek typeface, but the older habit of building alphabets from a small set of shapes that recombine across letters. Latin often draws each letter as its own problem, while Greek does not. That structure is what Chrysalis inherited, and Greek script support was drawn alongside the Latin because the family had been “thinking in” Greek from the start. The lineage is Swiss. Armin Hofmann sits underneath the drawing, alongside Max Bill and Roger Ferriter. Chrysalis carries their discipline more than their look. Five weights, twenty stylistic sets. The sets play a big part in the overall design. A designer can pick one set, combine several, or move between them, and the family holds together across the choices. Chrysalis is a display font, drawn to work on posters, wordmarks, covers, and large-format identity. Multilingual identity work sits inside the family. Latin and Greek drawn as one voice.

Michael Cina

 
Regular
Michael Cina’s work exists at the intersection of design, typography, branding, strategy, and art. This uncommon mix allows him to see differently and direct ideas with purpose. Decades of moving fluidly between disciplines have shaped an approach that blends instinct with strategy, intuition with clarity, and expression with systems thinking. An internationally recognized Creative Director and Artist, Michael leads the multi-disciplinary studio Cina Associates. His work spans global brands including Disney, Apple, American Express, ESPN, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Hewlett-Packard, and Microsoft. Across his career, he has synthesized typography, branding, illustration, motion, web, music, photography, and type design into cohesive systems that perform across platforms and cultures. His work has been widely published, recognized with Emmy and Grammy honors, and he is a frequent speaker at global design conferences, sharing a point of view rooted in authorship, clarity, and long-term brand thinking.
 
Regular
Chrysalis started from a small set of letters I drew inspired from one of Armin Hofmann's posters and linking it with Max Bill by the Greek logic underneath his forms. The first use was Psymun's Rainbow Party. Many years passed before I picked it up again seriously but I kept coming back to it. I wanted to figure out how to draw the full system so it worked together without issues. Some fonts just need time. Chrysalis was one of them. Roger Ferriter's lettering for a book on Karl Marx is what pulled me back in with real intent. His work is Greek-inspired too, but nothing like Hofmann or Bill. Seeing a different way of looking at the same source helped me work through the drawing. Often in my process, the inspiration matters more than the solution. To build the full weight system I had to redraw everything from scratch. The original drawing became the reference for the main characters and the source of ideas for the stylistic set alternates. The last year or so was expansion: weights, sets, filling out the family. Herb Sundays was my lab and you can see me messing around with a new idea on #52 for Hrishikesh Hirway. On #53 for David Marx I started to figure out the weights pretty quickly. By #55 for Oskar Mann it was going. A chrysalis is a transformation in progress. The typeface makes several different alphabets out of one family and the underlying logic stays half-visible under the surface. The name fits.
 
Regular
Chrysalis started from a small set of letters I drew inspired from one of Armin Hofmann's posters and linking it with Max Bill by the Greek logic underneath his forms. The first use was Psymun's Rainbow Party. Many years passed before I picked it up again seriously but I kept coming back to it. I wanted to figure out how to draw the full system so it worked together without issues. Some fonts just need time. Chrysalis was one of them. Roger Ferriter's lettering for a book on Karl Marx is what pulled me back in with real intent. His work is Greek-inspired too, but nothing like Hofmann or Bill. Seeing a different way of looking at the same source helped me work through the drawing. Often in my process, the inspiration matters more than the solution. To build the full weight system I had to redraw everything from scratch. The original drawing became the reference for the main characters and the source of ideas for the stylistic set alternates. The last year or so was expansion: weights, sets, filling out the family. Herb Sundays was my lab and you can see me messing around with a new idea on #52 for Hrishikesh Hirway. On #53 for David Marx I started to figure out the weights pretty quickly. By #55 for Oskar Mann it was going. A chrysalis is a transformation in progress. The typeface makes several different alphabets out of one family and the underlying logic stays half-visible under the surface. The name fits.

Michael Cina

2022

Family

Chrysalis

Designers

Michael Cina

Release

2022

Family Size

5 Styles

Features

20 stylistic sets, Greek support, multiple figure styles, ligatures, and character alternates.

Character Set

Latin Extended. ~480 glyphs per weight. 152 languages.

Formats

OTF, WOFF2, Variable (based on license type)

Licensing

Desktop/Print, Web, Content, App/Game, Logo/Wordmark, Core Media, All Media. Custom License Available.

Supported Languages

Acheron, Achinese, Acholi, Achuar-Shiwiar, Afar, Afrikaans, Aguaruna, Ahtna, Alekano, Algonquin, Amahuaca, Amarakaeri, Amis, Anaang, Andaandi, Anuta, Ao Naga, Apinayé, Aragonese, Arbëreshë Albanian, Arvanitika Albanian, Asháninka, Ashéninka Perené, Asu (Tanzania), Awetí, Balinese, Banjar, Bari, Basque, Batak Dairi, Batak Karo, Batak Mandailing, Batak Simalungun, Batak Toba, Bemba (Zambia), Bena (Tanzania), Bikol, Bislama, Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo, Bosnian, Breton, Buginese, Candoshi-Shapra, Caquinte, Caribbean Hindustani, Cashibo-Cacataibo, Cashinahua, Catalan, Cebuano, Central Aymara, Central Kurdish, Chachi, Chamorro, Chavacano, Chiga, Chiltepec Chinantec, Chokwe, Chuukese, Cimbrian, Cofán, Congo Swahili, Cook Islands Māori, Cornish, Corsican, Creek, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dehu, Dutch, Eastern Arrernte, Eastern Oromo, Embu, English, Ese Ejja, Faroese, Fijian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Friulian, Galician, Ganda, Garifuna, Ga’anda, German, Gheg Albanian, Gilbertese, Gooniyandi, Gourmanchéma, Guadeloupean Creole French, Gusii, Haitian, Hani, Hiligaynon, Ho-Chunk, Hopi, Huastec, Hungarian, Hän, Icelandic, Ido, Iloko, Inari Sami, Indonesian, Interglossa, Interlingua, Interlingue, Irish, Istro Romanian, Italian, Ixcatlán Mazatec, Jamaican Creole English, Javanese, Jola-Fonyi, K'iche', Kabuverdianu, Kaingang, Kalaallisut, Kalenjin, Kamba (Kenya), Kaonde, Kaqchikel, Karelian, Karo, Kashubian, Kekchí, Kenzi/Mattokki, Khasi, Kikuyu, Kimbundu, Kinyarwanda, Kirmanjki, Kituba (DRC), Klingon, Kongo, Konzo, Kuanyama, Kven Finnish, Kölsch, Ladin, Ladino, Latgalian, Ligurian, Lithuanian, Lojban, Lombard, Low German, Lower Sorbian, Lozi, Luba-Lulua, Lule Sami, Luo (Kenya and Tanzania), Luxembourgish, Macedo-Romanian, Makhuwa, Makhuwa-Meetto, Makonde, Makwe, Malagasy, Malaysian, Maltese, Mandinka, Mankanya, Manx, Maore Comorian, Maori, Mapudungun, Marshallese, Matsés, Mauritian Creole, Meriam Mir, Meru, Minangkabau, Mirandese, Modern Greek, Mohawk, Montenegrin, Murrinh-Patha, Mwani, Mískito, Naga Pidgin, Ndonga, Neapolitan, Ngazidja Comorian, Niuean, Nobiin, Nomatsiguenga, North Ndebele, Northern Kurdish, Northern Qiandong Miao, Northern Sami, Northern Uzbek, Northwestern Ojibwa, Norwegian, Novial, Nyanja, Nyankole, Occitan, Ojitlán Chinantec, Orma, Oroqen, Otuho, Palauan, Paluan, Pampanga, Papantla Totonac, Papiamento, Paraguayan Guaraní, Pedi, Picard, Pichis Ashéninka, Piemontese, Pijin, Pintupi-Luritja, Pipil, Pite Sami, Pohnpeian, Polish, Portuguese, Potawatomi, Purepecha, Páez, Quechua, Romanian, Romansh, Rotokas, Rundi, Rwa, Samburu, Samoan, Sango, Sangu (Tanzania), Saramaccan, Sardinian, Scots, Scottish Gaelic, Sena, Seri, Seselwa Creole French, Shambala, Shawnee, Shipibo-Conibo, Shona, Shuar, Sicilian, Silesian, Slovak, Slovenian, Soga, Somali, Soninke, South Ndebele, Southern Aymara, Southern Qiandong Miao, Southern Sami, Southern Sotho, Spanish, Sranan Tongo, Standard Estonian, Standard Latvian, Standard Malay, Sundanese, Swahili, Swati, Swedish, Swiss German, Tagalog, Tahitian, Taita, Tedim Chin, Tetum, Tetun Dili, Tiv, Toba, Tojolabal, Tok Pisin, Tokelau, Toki Pona, Tonga (Tonga Islands), Tonga (Zambia), Tosk Albanian, Tsonga, Tswana, Tumbuka, Turkmen, Tzeltal, Tzotzil, Uab Meto, Umbundu, Ume Sami, Upper Guinea Crioulo, Upper Sorbian, Venetian, Veps, Volapük, Võro, Walloon, Walser, Wangaaybuwan-Ngiyambaa, Waorani, Waray (Philippines), Warlpiri, Wayuu, Welsh, West Central Oromo, Western Abnaki, Western Frisian, Wik-Mungkan, Wiradjuri, Wolof, Xavánte, Xhosa, Yanesha', Yao, Yapese, Yindjibarndi, Yucateco, Zapotec, Zulu, Zuni, Záparo