World’s Handwriting Merges for Universal Typeface

Pen creator BIC has joined hands with DDB Düsseldorf and MediaMonks to embark upon a very unique writing experiment.

A digital platform has been set up that crowdsources the world’s handwriting into one typeface in celebration of the BIC Cristal ballpoint.  

The Universal Typeface Experiment has started collecting digital handwriting contributions and data from all over the planet in order to combine them.

Dreamt up by DDB Tribal Düsseldorf GmbH and produced by MediaMonks, the experiment is the first time anyone has attempted to combine penmanship contributions and demographical data from all over the world into a single font.

BIC’s Cristal ballpoint is the bestselling pen in history and has been dubbed ‘the universal pen’. The experiment aims to immortalise its users’ handwriting in a digital font that could be shared by everyone.

Users submit their handwriting using mobile connect technology on their smartphone or tablet touchscreen and can compare their contribution to the universal average as well as look at similarities between their writing and others. A unique algorithm merges all the input and aggregates the result.

Jan Propach, creative director of DDB Tribal Düsseldorf GmbH, says: “Our handwriting is one of our most personal possessions. With BIC having produced one of the most universal writing tools and billions of people using their product, the primary question was: what then, would the world’s universal handwriting look like? This experiment allows us to explore that and celebrate the pen we all know and use.”

Joris Pol, international project director at MediaMonks, adds: “MediaMonks developed an elaborate algorithm that underpins the digital experiment. The opportunity for our design and development teams to unify creativity and technology within this project by bridging the analogue and digital writing worlds has been a true honour.”

The first version of the ever-changing Universal Typeface will be downloadable in August and will be available to use as a font on computers across the world. Contribute your writing here.