Basel
Optimo · Chi-Long Trieu · 2013
A two-variant Swiss modernist family by Chi-Long Trieu, pairing a low-contrast Grotesk with a higher-contrast Classic, plus matching monos and a connecting variable axis.
About
A modernist sans by Chi-Long Trieu built as a dual programme. Basel Grotesk reinterprets Swiss modernist letterforms with a fresh dynamism, while Basel Classic shares the same skeleton and weight gradation but introduces decisively contrasting strokes for editorial elegance. A variable axis bridges the two, and a Mono companion runs through both variants. Initiated in 2013 and grown through fashion and publishing usage, the family runs from Hairline to Super with italics and a Variable cut.
Classification
Optimo describes Basel as a dual programme rooted in modernist typography, with a Grotesk variant and a Classic variant that share a skeleton and weight gradation but differ in stroke contrast, plus a monospace cut.