SFMOMA Sans: A Reflection of the Museum's Contemporary Visual

Designer: Olivia King

Scope: Typography

Client: SFMOMA

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) recently launched a custom typeface designed by Olivia King, a designer based in Sydney, Australia. The museum took this step to improve readability and accessibility at every point of visitor interaction: from signage and directories to publications and digital platforms.

According to Olivia King’s official website, SFMOMA’s previous identity system relied on two typefaces used for various print materials, environmental graphics, and digital platforms. The differences between these two typefaces were inconsistent and affected the visual system. With this new typeface design, the museum has created a single, unified typographic system that prioritizes visitor comfort, clarity, and inclusivity, featuring expressive characters that reflect contemporary art itself.

Inspired by the museum’s longstanding use of geometric sans-serif typography (influenced by Futura), SFMOMA Sans was born: a typeface that combines clear, highly legible forms with subtle touches, curves, and movements inspired by contemporary art and visual culture. Olivia King explains that her creative process began by exploring SFMOMA’s archives and examining their connection to sans serif typography and the geometric forms of Futura. These references ultimately became the primary foundation for the design.

SFMOMA Sans itself is a comprehensive typeface system consisting of 18 styles that span weights ranging from Thin to Black. After studying each style, we found that the design of these typefaces–from their curves to their dynamic elements–is simple yet expressive. These typefaces successfully convey the energy of contemporary art that defines the museum’s identity. The resulting typographic system also fulfills the goals of readability and flexibility for various needs, such as branding, wayfinding, editorial, and digital promotion.

Elegantly addressing the initial challenge, SFMOMA Sans strikes a balance between accessibility and clarity. Its open forms, distinct character differences, and carefully designed spacing successfully enhance readability across various sizes and media, while reinforcing the museum’s contemporary identity. Furthermore, this typographic system demonstrates consistency and clarity to enhance the museum-visiting experience. SFMOMA Sans adapts to a wide range of needs: exhibition graphics, publications, digital platforms, directories, and more. Its accessible features make it a dynamic, contemporary visual identity for the museum that connects with the artworks on display.

After all, designing a typeface for an art museum presents its own challenges, compounded by the need to make it accessible. SFMOMA is an example of how a typeface can reflect the museum’s identity and the artworks on display, while at the same time offering accessibility and inclusivity to all visitors.

Credits

Type Design: Olivia King

Design Direction: Amy Yu Gray (SFMOMA)

Mastering: Noe Blanco

Typographic Consulting: Troy Leinster

Motion Design: Mac Archibald