Basetica
A typeface commissioned for a specific institutional occasion
Matthieu Cortat designed Basetica for Geneva studio GVA on the occasion of its joining the Base group, a collective of three agencies across Europe (Brussels) and America (New York). The brief called for a typeface affirming Swiss Graphic Design values—precision, rigour, cleanliness—while avoiding clichéd representations of Switzerland. Released in 2012 by 205tf as a 12-style family across roman and italic cuts, Basetica is described as a contemporary reinterpretation of the International Swiss Style: open and unadorned, raw at moments yet always restrained, and approached with deliberate irony.
Set in Basetica
Insights
- The typeface arose from a specific institutional context—GVA's joining the Base group within the Open Switzerland project—rather than as a speculative or retail-first project.
- The design consciously frames itself as a 'contemporary Helvetica,' using irony toward the International Swiss Style as a generative constraint rather than straightforward homage.
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