A striking new typeface called Aquavit has been released by Floodfonts, featuring a distinctive blend of precision and vintage charm that draws inspiration from the organic forms and curved lines of the Art Nouveau movement. Designed by Cologne-based designer Felix Braden, this high-contrast sans-serif font combines the seriousness and precision of traditional typography with a friendly vintage touch and handcrafted, vibrant character.
The font's flowing, organic letterforms reveal clear calligraphic influences, creating a cool elegance that makes it particularly suitable for exclusive lifestyle products. From beauty and fashion to music, food and beverage, interior design, and beyond, Aquavit brings special authenticity and personality to any project. With its unconventional charm, the typeface serves as the perfect choice for innovative brands looking to stand out from the crowd.
Beyond its visual appeal, Aquavit impresses with its functionality and excellent readability, even at smaller font sizes. Whether used in headlines on screen or in print, as logos or on packaging, Aquavit proves itself as an expressive display font that effortlessly draws attention with its distinctive forms. The slightly top-heavy design with subtle calligraphic influences radiates a touch of extravagance and grace, making Aquavit the first choice for designers who want to give their projects special exclusivity.
Designer Felix Braden explains his creative process: "Working on Aquavit began with the desire to create a contemporary font influenced by Art Nouveau. The style is named after the revolutionary art magazine 'Jugend,' which was published in Munich from 1896 to 1940, and whose changing letterforms were an important source of inspiration for Aquavit." The exploration of organic elements, flowing lines, and expressive details led to the initial design ideas for the typeface.
Braden initially faced uncertainty about the direction of Aquavit's design, debating between a more experimental, hard-to-read display font or a more minimalist approach. "In the end, I chose clarity and precision and selected simpler, clearly defined forms," he explained. Throughout the entire design process, the serifs became increasingly subtle and were ultimately only suggested. This simplification allowed him to improve readability without losing the characteristic features of Art Nouveau with its flowing and expressive forms.
The designer addressed a common challenge with high-contrast sans-serif fonts, where the ends of hairlines often lack visual strength, which is particularly important for letter recognition at small point sizes. "In Aquavit, a calligraphic flourish at the end of the hairlines creates a thickening that not only acts decoratively but also forms an anchor for the eye – similar to serifs that give stability to the font," Braden noted. This approach makes the typeface not only more readable but also more versatile, creating a balance between modern aesthetics and cozy retro charm.
The font family includes alternatives to the uppercase letters with the twist integrated as OpenType features, providing designers with additional flexibility in their creative work. Aquavit is available in nine different weights: Thin, Extralight, Light, Regular, Medium, Semibold, Bold, Extrabold, and Black. The font family offers four different types of numerals and supports all Western, Eastern, and Central European languages.
Aquavit is available to all Adobe Creative Cloud users at no additional cost, while licenses are also available through Fontbros at $49 per cut or $289 for the complete family, with a 30% discount available until October 6, 2025. The font's release has generated significant interest in the design community, with many professionals praising its unique combination of historical inspiration and contemporary functionality that makes it suitable for both digital and print applications across various industries.
