Design of typography and signage for the painted wall text 'Eesti' by artist Jens Haaning – Kumu Art Museum, Tallinn, Estonia

In 2004 Jens Haaning wrote ‘Deutschland’ on the wall of a barn in the small town of Tewel-Moor in Germany. The country name was spelt in its native spelling. Although the strategy here is the same, the work triggers different reactions based on the respective countries’ relationship to its history. Germany’s name automatically conjures up the past. This work and the works that went before were only shown in their respective countries.

A typeface was designed for this purpose. The primary objective in the typeface design was to create anonymity – a typeface free from any cultural connections or connotations and so in that sense impressionable only by the observers perception.