Slab Square Yili 3 is a bold, narrow, high contrast, upright, normal x-height font.
Keywords: posters, headlines, signage, packaging, mastheads, industrial, vintage, editorial, poster, western, compact impact, signage feel, vintage display, strong presence, condensed, blocky, bracketed, tall, angular.
A condensed, tall serif with assertive slab-like feet and mostly square-ended terminals. Strokes are heavy with noticeable contrast: verticals dominate while horizontals and joins pinch thinner, creating a crisp, engraved rhythm. Counters are compact and often rectangular, and the joins show tight, controlled curves that keep the overall texture firm and vertical. The lowercase follows the same condensed structure with short extenders and compact bowls, while the numerals are sturdy and proportionally narrow, maintaining an even, columnar color in text.
This design is well suited to posters, headlines, mastheads, and display typography where its condensed width and strong slabs can create impact without consuming horizontal space. It also works for labels and packaging that want a sturdy, vintage-leaning tone, and for signage-style applications that benefit from its upright, vertical structure.
The font projects a strong, old-fashioned authority with an industrial, poster-era punch. Its sharp vertical emphasis and sturdy slabs evoke signage, headlines, and stamped or engraved lettering, balancing grit with a measured, editorial seriousness.
The letterforms appear designed to deliver maximum presence in a compact width, combining slab-like stability with sharpened contrast for a crisp, print-forward texture. The overall construction suggests an intention to echo historic display and signage styles while staying disciplined and readable in short blocks of text.
In running text, the condensed proportions pack a lot of black into a line, so spacing and line height become important for clarity. The squared, slabby details and tight apertures give it a distinctive voice that reads best when set with enough size or generous tracking.