MuirMcNeil’s New Typeface Is As Fragmented and Malleable As Memory

Graphic designer Natasha Lucas began designing Bisect while still a student at the London College of Communication as part of a more significant project based on Harold Pinter’s mid-career “memory plays.” A lead character in a memory play tells events based on memories that may or may not be accurate. Old Times (1971), No Man’s Land (1975), and Betrayal (1978) are all works by Pinter that explore how flawed memory and erroneous perception can lead to negative judgments and personal betrayals.

Lucas created the Bisect type system as a graphic representation of linguistic fragmentation as it erodes due to memory’s selective, flawed character. Simultaneously, she intended to establish a unified visual type system used in both print and digital media. To develop Bisect’s letterforms, she devised a gently modulated grid governed by a humorous interaction between separate portions. MuirMcNeil then created a whole character set and cut Bisect into three different variations.