The Type Directors Club, the world’s leading typography organization, today opened the call for entries for the third edition of its global Ascenders competition, celebrating international typographers, letterers, and type designers age 35 and under.

Ascenders is a portfolio-based competition dedicated to type in all its versatile forms, and the inspiring up and coming designers — individuals or duos — who are elevating the medium.  Entrants submit six projects with short descriptions, as well as a statement of their role in the project’s creation, and a list of individual credits where applicable.  

Entries are now being accepted, with entry fees increasing after the regular deadline of April 30, 2022.  The extended deadline is on May 31, 2022, and winners will be announced in July.  

In order to make Ascenders more affordable around the globe, TDC is offering a three-tier price structure with steep discounts based on the country where the entrant is located.  TDC members and individuals nominated for Ascenders also qualify for discounts. 

This year’s entries will be judged by a diverse jury of global leaders in the field, including some past Ascenders winners: 

• Gail Anderson, chair, BFA Design and BFA Advertising Program, School of Visual Arts; partner, Anderson Newton, New York, The One Club Board member
• Aditya Bayu, typographer and researcher of Indonesian scripts, Jakarta
• Eleni Beveratou, creative director, Dalton Maag, London
• Erik Brandt, department chair, BFA Design, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis
• Anthony Bryant, creative, art director, Brooklyn
• Fer Cozzi, graphic designer, type designer, Buenos Aires, Ascenders 2019
• Cem Eskinazi, graphic/type designer, Barcelona
• Jessica Hische, lettering artist, author, San Francisco
• Tien-Min Liao, type designer, New York, Ascenders 2018
• Eric Q. Liu, editor, The Type, Tokyo
• Dafne Martinez, type designer, TipasType, Mexico City
• Gabriel Martínez Meave, graphic and typographic designer, calligrapher, illustrator, Meave Stvdivm, Mexico City
• Abbott Miller, partner, Pentagram, New York
• Davis Ngarupe and JP Haynie, partners, creative directors, Actual Source, Provo
• Miguel Reyes, type designer, commercial type, Cholula 
• Alex Trochut, artist, graphic designer, illustrator, typographer, Brooklyn
• Albert Trulls, art director, illustrator, letterer, Barcelona, Ascenders 2018
• Liu Zhao, cofounder, creative director, another design, Guangzhou, Ascenders 2018

TDC, part of The One Club for Creativity, will host a series of online events April 21-23 for different regions around the world in the lead up to the submission deadline, where past Ascenders winners will discuss the program and the trajectory of their careers.  Confirmed speakers include Wael Morcos (New York, 2018), Fer Cozzi (Buenos Aires, 2018) Albert Trulls (Barcelona, 2018), Mark de Winne (Singapore, 2018), Loris Olivier (Seoul, 2019), Anthony Hos (New Zealand, 2019), with more to be announced.  The events will be moderated by current judges including Davis Ngarupe and JP Haynie.

Other prominent past Ascenders winners include Kevin Cantrell (US, 2018), Ben Grandgenett (New York, 2019), Ben Johnston, (Toronto, 2019), Phillip Neumeyer (Copenhagen, 2018), Juan Carlos Pagan (New York, 2018), Tre Seals (Maryland, 2018), and others. 

“Ascenders was conceived as a competition to elevate and celebrate the work of younger practitioners of typography,” said Paul Carlos, principal at Pure+Applied, adjunct faculty, Parsons School of Design, The New School, New York, and TDC Advisory Board member who created the program.  “In its first two years, the jurors selected promising bodies of work from 28 designers who have continued to demonstrate their talents by creating stellar work. I am eagerly looking forward to seeing the designers this year’s jurors will select.”

This year’s Ascenders call for entries branding campaign and award are designed by Zipeng Zhu, founder, creative director at Dazzle Studios, Brooklyn, with additional custom lettering by Tien-Min Liao.

For more information and to enter, please visit the 2022 Ascenders website.

The One Club for Creativity, producer of The One Show, ADC Annual Awards, Type Directors Club Communication Design and Typeface Design awards, Young Guns and Creative Week, is the world’s foremost non-profit organization whose mission is to support and celebrate the global creative community.  The One Show is a top global awards show for advertising, design and digital marketing, focusing on the creativity of ideas and quality of execution.  Established in 1921, the global ADC Annual Awards is the world’s longest continuously running creative award for advertising and design, honoring excellence in craft, design and innovation.  Creative Week takes place in May, and is the preeminent festival celebrating the intersection of advertising and the arts.