I wrote a 7000+ essay on on Serif Populism, what came before it and what might come after for Dinamo’s Guest Takeover. Here’s a small excerpt:
In the populist mindset, “serif” stands for tradition, regardless of whether that tradition is invented. It also stands for beauty, but understood as decoration, often cheap, as in the Oval Office. Thus, Serif Populism is a reaction to what is perceived as sans: sans soul, roots, history; sans decor or decorum. It is a reaction to a bland nothingness that “bears no relation to any reality whatsoever”. The culprit? Corporate simplification (which goes hand in hand with the modernizing style of graphic design – remember Hillary’s right-arrowed H?). Serif Populism presents itself as “honest work” made by “real folks” who are neither corporate drones nor branding experts.
Read the rest here.