Helvetica
Movie poster via Linotype
In keeping with the theme, I'm sure we'll all use said font for this blogpost. I had heard of this movie before but never sought it out to watch. After today, I don't know why I waited so long. I was so into the film AND the typeface, that it was hard to leave for my next class and miss the ending. Helvetica is a font that everyone knows, whether they are aware or not. It's everywhere. When I think of some of my favorite clothing stores, two of them use Helvetica in their branding: American Apparel and Gap. It seems like the perfect modern typeface, as the movie mentioned. What I appreciate about the film is how it didn't just start off with a history of the font, but of designers and typographers talking about it and why they liked it. It was beautifully filmed and quirky, which made it interesting to watch. It is about a font, after all. Then they went through the history. Next, the corporate takeover of the font and the struggle for designers to break away from the craze. I missed the ending, but after forty-five minutes of Helvetica praise, I was thinking the font could do no wrong until just before I left. I'm glad I didn't miss that part because the thought went through my head to rush home and immediately work it into all my designs.
Kidding.
Maybe?
Whether it is the best font in the world or not, no one can argue that any one font has had more recognition and popularity. It's silly to think of fonts as popular, and that as a designer I may very well one day be dreaming of fonts and talking like most of the people interviewed in the film. It's cleanliness and soft curves with that perfect spacing makes it pleasing to the eye in a way that no other font has. Oh gosh, here I go. Anyways, the film did give me a new appreciation for the work of typographers and all the details that go into these typefaces we see every day. I know I can never see Helvetica again without a light-bulb going off, and I'm glad for it. One of my biggest struggles in designing is what fonts to use. I am still a beginner and don't know that much about typefaces, but they are of crucial importance to my career and this movie got me really excited about typography like nothing yet has. I feel like the spark has been ignited!
Just My Type
Chapter 2: CAPITAL OFFENCE
There are far more entertaining chapters in the book, but with a topic as intricate as typefaces and fonts, I think it's best to get some history.
It's like the first day we came into class and Theresa began talking about serifs and sans-serifs. The first time she said that I knew she was talking about fonts, but had no idea exactly what about them. I've come a long way.
The way type looks creates a mood and atmosphere for readers. With Vicki Walker, who got fired for writing a simple e-mail in ALL CAPS, as an example, we must be cognizant of not only what we are saying, but how we are saying it. Typefaces matter. Fonts matter.
Fonts have gender. Generally masculine topics are in bold, heavy and linear. Opposite that are feminine fonts, which are more thin, curvy and oftentimes appear handwritten. I'm not trying to be sexist here. As Garfield mentions, you can change up the system, but how people automatically perceive and make associations from the fonts you use doesn't change.
What I learned from this chapter? Gutenberg's Textura is the world's first font, and thank goodness I didn't have to deal with type back then. It's so easy to select digitalized fonts pre-made for you from the drop box, but back then they had to cut individual letters out of metal, string them together, and add ink. In a way, they knew exactly what they wanted from those fonts. They knew everything about them. These days it takes a careful eye to choose the right font. Which is right may not always be one answer, but there are certainly inappropriate times to use certain fonts. Research becomes crucial for us as designers to make the right choices.
Chapter 9: What is it about the Swiss?
I chose this chapter because:
1. I like Europe.
2. We just watched Helvetica.
3. I can't stop looking at these gold disco shorts from American Apparel.
After the world wars, a new trend towards modernism and practicality swept across Europe. This was especially evident in the use of fonts such as Helvetica and Univers. A line I loved from the movie stated: "Helvetica is like oxygen, you have little choice but to breathe it in. "
As I said above, it's everywhere. What is it about it?
Emotionally, it's like the Swiss. Neutral and fresh.
It conveys honesty without being overbearing.
It's efficient.
But, enough about Helvetica. Univers is the other major Swiss font discussed in chapter nine.
Univers is a more authoritative typeface, and replaced Futura. It's slogan was: "a synthesis of Swiss thoroughness, French elegance and British precision in pattern manufacture."
Other descriptions label it as: the pinnacle of cool European modernism, 'the least bad" sans serif face and a font that lets you go somewhere in safety.
It was invented by Frutiger in 1952 and is used in the metro systems of Paris, Montreal and the London street signs of Westminster. It never gained the status of Helvetica, but neither has any other font.
In short, the Swiss know how to do efficiency beautifully, and although I was always drawn to them before, I'll be paying even closer attention.
Chapter 18: Breaking the Rules
To break the rules you have to first know them. I'm just now really understanding the sacred ground on which great typefaces exist. Maybe it's because we see chaos everywhere do we think we as designers can add to it. While I do want to be creative and think out of the box with type, there are guidelines to consider before getting too crazy.
Don't use too many different ones on a page. Be legible. Don't use ALL CAPS. Etc..
Yeah, yeah.
Fonts were created for different purposes. The book uses Times New Roman as an example, citing its extreme popularity due to its legibility in all different sizes and economical use of space.
However, all that can be a bit boring. So Carter, of Rampant Lions Press, and Bents, of the Chelsea College of Art and Design, proposed a "love letter to disaster." There would be a lot of bad fonts and many failures, but there would also be success stories.
I don't like to conform. I know we all do, but I tend to side with the rebels. The same goes for my type preferences. I'm also tired of perfect type. I find inspiration in typefaces that don't always match their content, such as Be Here Now by Ram Dass, with it's stamped out letters in all sizes and posters with chaotic fonts all over. They may not be the most legible, but they are interesting and make me stop and look more carefully. In that sense, I see them better.
