The Department of Tourism recently relaunched its “More Fun in the Philippines” campaign last February 8, and a huge part of the relaunch is a brand new font called “Barabara”, a typeface that largely takes inspiration from the local jeepney’s signages.
Global advertising agency BBDO helped with the DOT’s campaign relaunch. The challenge was to bring something fresh to the table. With this in mind, they chose someone young to help with the new campaign.
A 25-year-old art director, Michelle Co, was responsible for the custom-made typeface made especially for the campaign. The aesthetic of the font is influenced by the signages found most commonly in jeepneys, tricycles, and even some beach resorts found even in the most remote parts of the country. It is then combined with the elements of a good type. The result is a crisp sans serif font which manages to look as if it’s handmade, even when shown on a digital screen.
Barabara features the complete Filipino alphabet (which is basically the English alphabet plus “Enye” or the letter N with tilde), Hindu-Arabic numbers, and the Philippine Peso sign.