helvetica

No one can really judge what the most popular typeface in the world is, however many people would strongly agree that Helvetica is up there at the top of the list, if not number one. In the 2007 documentary Helvetica directed and produced by Gary Hustwit, Michael Beirut points out, “Everywhere you look you see typefaces. But there's one you probably see more than any other one, and that's Helvetica. You know, there it is, and it seems to come from no where. You know, it seems like air? It seems like gravity?” (Helvetica, 2007). Beirut is just one of the many who live and die for this font.

The font dates back to 1957, when Max Miedenger got together with Eduard Hoffman to create this Swiss typeface. They designed the font in order for it to compete with a similar font that was popular at the time, Akzidenz-Grotesk. The original name for the font was actually Neue Haas Grotesk. In designing Helvetica, Miedenger and Hoffman set out “to create a neutral typeface that had great clarity, no intrinsic meaning in its form, and could be used on a wide variety of signage” (Wikipedia, 2011). The German company Stempel then changed the name of the font in 1960 from Neue Haas Grotesk to Helvetica, “in order to make it more marketable internationally” (Wikipedia, 2011).

An extremely simple and elegant font, Helvetica is classified as a Grotesque sans-serif. It can also be described as Lineal, when referencing the Vox-ATypI Classification of Type (Typophile, 2011). “The strokes in Helvetica are monotone in weight” (Typophile, 2011). Because of its “uniform, upright character”, Helvetica is also often referred to as an “anonymous sans serif” (Thinking With Type, 2007).

As I mentioned before, Helvetica is one of the most widely used fonts in the world. It’s simplicity and extreme readability make it an easy choice for a logo, billboard, storefront, magazine spread, you name it. It is aesthetically pleasing to the eye and gives off a very specific type of feel and emotion. American Apparel, American Airlines, Jeep, Panasonic, Target, Toyota, Microsoft, and Apple are just a few of the many companies who use Helvetica in their logos. All of these companies are able to provoke a specific feeling and brand their image by using the font, even though they are all so immensely different. “You can say, ‘I love you,’ in Helvetica. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be really fancy. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it's really intensive and passionate, you know, and it might work.” (Helvetica, 2007). I love this quote by Massimo Vignelli because it is so true. Helvetica is such a flexible font that every variation portrays so many different kinds of emotions, and it portrays all of them perfectly.

Although Helvetica has been around for a while, it is still just as popular today as it was when it was first created. Some people argue that Helvetica is boring and over-simplified, but others, such as myself, find that the simplicity is the beauty of the font.

Reference List:

Helvetica. Dir. Gary Hustwit. Swiss Dots Ltd., 2007. Film.

2007. “Classification.” Thinking With Type. viewed 4 March 2011. http://www.papress.com/thinkingwithtype/letter/classification.htm.

2007. “Helvetica: A Documentary Film by Gary Hustwit”. Helvetica Film. viewed 4 March 2011. http://www.helveticafilm.com/about.html.

2010. “Helvetica”. Typophile. viewed 4 March 2011. http://typophile.com/node/13514.

2011. “Helvetica”. Wikipedia. viewed 4 March 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helvetica.