An October 19 find worth revisiting: Source Type’s Dictionary of the Illegible explores illegible typography, including metal-band logos and comic-book symbols standing in for swearing.
That last example does a lot with no ordinary words. Reading letters and receiving a message aren’t always the same operation. Type can work as texture, belonging or gesture. Sometimes it behaves more like music than a kettle manual.
This isn’t a free pass for menus nobody can decipher. It’s a reason to ask what these letters need to do. Communicating a departure time? Clarity wins. Creating a feeling? Form suddenly has more room to move.
