You can now write with a typeface that was designed by humans and shaped by the Amazon River

Why does one of the planet’s key climate regulators and major biodiversity hubs require its own brand identity, you ask? Good question. Marketing has, somewhat ridiculously, become an expectation of the modern world. Even the planet’s largest tropical rainforest needs good PR. 

Almost every destination with a tourism body technically has a brand identity. It’s like when you see shrimp on a barbecue and think “Oh, Australia would be nice this time of year”. Or you buy a ‘I [HEART] NY’ t-shirt and then go to MoMa and see the original 1976 sketch hanging on the wall. You’ve bought, either emotionally or literally, into a destination’s brand. 

We see a lot of tourism brands, and not all of them are good. Or worse, they’re forgettable. But Amazonia, the new Brazilian tourism brand comprising nine states, 722 cities and 28 million people, has just launched with some impressively unforgettable creative made entirely by local artists. Oh, and the local river system.

At the heart of the brand design is its logo, which has been drawn using the real twists and turns of the Amazon River tributaries. Using satellite imagery and coordinates, each letter was found within the river system’s natural bends. These letters now make up the typeface ‘Igaratype’, based on the word ‘igarapé’ meaning small stream, which you can use online to write with the waters and export your own Amazonian rivers lettering work. Not dissimilar to NASA’s Landsat platform, which allows you to write your name in Earth’s features found in Landsat images.

The Legal Amazon, when looked at as one territory, is larger than India, makes up 60 percent of Brazil and has over 4,300 miles (7,000 kilometers) of rivers.

The Amazonia initiative was established by Integrated Amazon Routes (RAI) and the Brazilian Tourism Board (Embratur) and brought to life by the agency FutureBrand São Paulo, and exists to bring the region’s diverse tourism experiences together under one roof and offer consolidated, sustainable development for the local businesses and communities of the Legal Amazon. 

“Brazilians don’t come here,” said Ana Jacques, project manager at the Brazilian Tourism Board, in a video statement. “We’re a region made up of nine out of Brazil’s 27 states that have always communicated with the rest of the country in a fragmented way.”

Amazonia aims to change that. The Legal Amazon, when looked at as one territory, is larger than India, makes up 60 percent of Brazil and has over 4,300 miles (7,000 kilometers) of rivers. Its nine states include: Amazonas, home to Pico de Neblina, Brazil’s highest peak; Amapá, where you can stand with one foot in each hemisphere; Pará, the world’s biggest acai producer; Rondônia  where ancient geoglyphs are etched into the earth; Mato Grosso and its crystal clear waterways; Acre, the last place to see the sun set in the country; Maranhão and its pristine forest reserves; Roraima and its mountain that borders Venezuela and Guyana; and Tocantins, Brazil’s youngest state.

And while the Amazon River system winds its way through the region, each state is culturally distinct. To reflect this breadth of diversity, FutureBrand São Paulo worked with artists from each of the nine states to contribute and inform the visual identity of the brand. These collaborators include illustrators Cristo, Winy Tapajós, Malu Menezes and Beatriz Belo; photographers Ori Junior and Bob Menezes; letterer Odir Abreu; and the Instituto Letras que Flutuam.

“When I was asked to make this illustration I immediately understood the extent of my responsibility,” said illustrator Winy Tapajós. “After all, we don’t have just one, but many Amazons. And frankly I cannot say that my creation speaks for all of our territory, but I can say that it represents an intimate part of my view on the immeasurable wealth of the Amazon.”

The initiative also includes a ‘Feito de Amazônia’ (‘Made of Amazon’) seal. Designed as a stamp to certify product origins, from crafts and produce to music, it aims to strengthen the region’s visibility. It also hopes to empower local artisans, entrepreneurs and small business owners, and lead to an increase in revenue. 

“The goal is to organize experiences, tourist destinations, licensing and the seal of origin under a brand that is desired and recognized worldwide,” said Gilvan Pereira, Secretary of Tourism of Rondônia. 

Is a clever logo design enough to unify a large, multifaceted region? Only time will tell. But the intention and the vibrancy of the brand is already gaining international attention. Now, let’s see—how much are flights to Belém?

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