Juan Luis Blanco is a graphic designer, type designer and calligrapher based in Zumaia (Spain). He has worked as a freelancer graphic designer from 1997, and in 2013, he attained an MA in Typeface Design at the University of Reading.
During the MA in Typeface Design he developed Amaikha, a multi-script font family comprising Latin, Greek, Cyrillic, Arabic and Tifinagh. Currently he combines calligraphy classes with typographic projects, either custom or retail, that focus in the Basque lettering style as well as multi script typefaces involving the Latin, Arabic and Tifinagh alphabets.
In 2017, one of these typefaces, Qandus, designed in collaboration with Kristyan Sarkis and Laura Meseguer, earned a TDC Certificate of Typographic Excellence. He has been a calligrapy and typography lecturer at Creanavarra Design School.
He gives Tifinagh typography workshops at the ESAV in Marrakech and collaborates regularly with the Basque public radio talking about typography related topics. He loves designing typefaces and tries to maintain a healthy balance by rock-climbing.
