Design Can't Rely on Logic: Troy Leinster on Type Design and Human Perception

Design Can't Rely on Logic: Troy Leinster on Type Design and Human Perception

From Design Notes by Liam Spradlin

September 9, 2025 · 45 min · Season 3 · Episode 10

About this episode

Troy Leinster discusses the importance of type design and trusting human perception in the design process.

In this episode, I reconnect with my former instructor, type designer and design coach Troy Leinster. Troy shares his journey from graphic design to type design, and explains why learning to make letters makes you a better designer. We also dig into the importance of trusting the human eye over geometry, the productive friction of sketching by hand, and how understanding calligraphy builds a stronger perspective on type design. Troy discusses why, in the age of AI, the most important thing a designer can do is put their personal touch on the work.

People in this episode

Host: Liam Spradlin

Guest: Troy Leinster

Topics covered

  • type design
  • human perception
  • graphic design
  • calligraphy
  • AI in design
  • personal touch in design

Keywords

  • type design
  • human perception
  • graphic design
  • calligraphy
  • AI
  • design coaching
  • sketching

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: type design, calligraphy

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