Have you seen a baby bus?

If you haven’t, then a quick trip around Cavite will keep you up to speed. This heavily colorful mode of transportation remains one of Cavite’s strongest icons. No wonder that it inspired typeface designer John Misael Villanueva to immortalize it.

Meet the newest Cavite-inspired font, “Baby Bus.” Villanueva took to Facebook his announcement of creating a new “layered font” that heavily takes up from the head-turner lettering seen on Cavite’s baby buses. The font is offered in various combinations, offering a sense of vibrancy and history in its curls and lines.

To pacify our curiosity about its little creation story, we asked Villanueva a few questions.

Why did you decide to take inspiration from Cavite’s baby buses?

I want to create a font version of those old school letterings and sign paintings from our local sign painters not just from Cavite but the whole Philippines if possible. I want to preserve the art of lettering through type designs. And because I am from Cavite it’s only reasonable that I start looking for inspiration here in my beloved culture-rich province.

Baby buses are so Cavite. This mode of transportation is used in several towns (a third of the whole province) such as Bacoor City, Cavite City, Kawit, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, and Naic. As a type lover, I can’t help but notice the unique, vibrant, and eye-catching type designs on every baby bus. The one that I created is only one of the hundreds of lettering styles that we can find on baby buses. I’m planning to create more “Baby Bus” typeface and I want to give it for free. I also have a sign painting inspired typeface and a typeface inspired by the Filipino mountain tribe tattoos that you can download for free here.

What can you share about Cavite’s art scene that everyone in the Philippines should know?

Cavite has a lot of creatives. We have graffiti artists, muralists, painters, calligraphers, and type designers. The art scene in Cavite is alive, but not as rich as what you can see in Manila. Some do art camps and workshops but not enough to showcase all the talents Caviteños have. And not enough to persuade children to pursue arts and design. We have a long way to go and I’m not giving up. Someday, our art scene will be as rich as our province’s culture.

Download “Baby Bus” for free here.