Alejandro Paul of Sudtipos is a pioneer of that fascinating genre in contemporary type design that could be labeled ‘acrobatic scripts.’ Or, in techie terms, ‘OpenType-programmed script fonts with automatic glyph substitution.’ In other words, fonts that behave intelligently and help you select the ideal version of each letter in a particular combination to create amazing headlines and logos. The earliest scripts that could do this (such as Adobe’s Poetica and Bickham Script) were rather conventional in form. What Ale Paul added to the mix was a wildly eclectic choice of letterforms, tapping into the seductive aesthetics of 20th-century commercial art rather than traditional calligraphy. One of his masterpieces is Ministry Script, inspired by 1920s American advertising. A single face with over 1,000 glyphs, Ministry Script comes with a galaxy of alternates, swash characters and ligatures to explore. Check out the Ministry Script Guide PDF for detailed info.

One of MyFonts’ greatest hits of the past two years is the Museo series from Jos Buivenga’s exljibris foundry. The family started out as a semi-serif, then branched out into the sans-serif genre with the cool, fresh Museo Sans. The new Museo Slab logically completes the suite. As it turns out, the sturdy slab serifs combine perfectly with the family’s friendly geometry, resulting in a wonderfully readable typeface. A perfect contemporary alternative for popular classics in the genre, such as Rockwell and Lubalin Graph. For increased clarity in magazines, reports and listings, pair Museo Slab with Museo Sans.

This new font from Canada Type takes its name from Tupelo, Mississippi. Elvis fans know why: Tupelo is the birthplace of the King, and Elvis Presley’s handwriting is one of the two sources of inspiration for the font. The other, believe it or not, is the handwriting of Abraham Lincoln. Designer Philip Bouwsma discovered a striking likeness between the hands of these great men. Research revealed that the King and the President had one thing in common: a writing system they had both learned during their first school years. Tupelo combines the slant, texture and flourish of Elvis’s handwriting, embodied in the lowercase, with the originality of Lincoln’s capitals. A unique fusion of politics and pop culture, Tupelo comes in two main fonts, plus three sets of alternates and extras. All of these are combines in Tupelo Pro, a single font of over 840 glyphs, with sophisticated OpenType programming.

When we interviewed designer Hubert Jocham in November, he introduced his sans-serif NewJune on MyFonts for the occasion. NewJune caught the imagination of many users and has been doing very well ever since. Before becoming available for retail on our site, it had been around for several years as a face used by magazines the world over — including Harvey Nichols (London) and W magazine (New York). It is also the corporate typeface of the Academy of the Arts in Munich. NewJune’s conception is more radical than some of Jocham’s other sans-serifs, such as the smooth NewLibris. The way its stems are joined to the curves — with all spurs removed — results in a very distinctive and strong image. NewJune also includes an interesting serifed version, which will soon be made available here as well.