linus-boman 2 years ago
Linus Boman #Dee Dee Design

How "Chop Suey Fonts" became the Face of Chinese Food

Chop suey fonts are a subcategory of so-called "ethnic" display fonts, and are a unique American invention with roots in the 170 year history of Chinese migrants in United States.

00:00 | This lettering will look familiar... unless you're from China.

01:06 | What is a Chop Suey font?

01:35 | Typographic Stereotypes from repeat usage

02:02 | Typographic Stereotypes with design intent

03:04 | How Chinese writing works, compared with Chop Suey fonts

04:44 | Where it started, how it began

05:22 | Some historical context

06:41 | Chinatown's theatrical reinvention

07:21 | How exclusion propelled Chinese restaurant expansion

09:16 | Repetition trumps authenticity

10:05 | Why Chinese restaurants perpetuated this trope

10:57 | Can a font be racist?

11:17 | The type equivalent of a fake foreign accent

12:16 | Or... don't be a hack?

13:14 | Where are things headed?

13:50 | Chinese food is more than takeout food

15:11 | Corporate high-end dining

15:42 | Embassy restaurants

16:06 | New-school Chinese American restaurants

16:45 | An expression of Chinese identities

17:54 | TienMin Liao's multi-script typography

19:02 | How to support Chinatown's survival