Watching the film Helvetica left me feeling more involved in the world. We all see the font helvetica day to day whether it’d be in advertising, maps, or simply on a paper for an assignment. I loved seeing flashes of just how often helvetica is used. Maybe I don’t appreciate so much that we use that font so often, but it was interesting to see how much of it we all don’t acknowledge it surrounding us. It was very funny for me to see that helvetica is what is used for subway directions. I spend my breaks and summers mainly in Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn with my friends. It’s something I’ve never noticed. But what I’ve noticed over time was whenever I read a those subway signs I feel okay. Hearing some of the designers talk about emotion through purely font was something that made sense to me. Nothing is better than taking the path from hoboken and seeing “Journal Square to 33rd St.” in that simple sleek familiar font. The gap between the letters in fonts is something that I have always payed attention to, whether intentional or not. Massimo Vingnelli said, “It’s the space between black that makes it”. Mike Parker echoed that talking about the “interrelationship of negative space” and how “the space between hold the letters”. All of these stood out to me and brought me back to the times I would go through fonts and look at the spacing between and see what I liked and what bothered me.

Helvetica font is comforting to me in the fact that its uniform and consistent. But Erik Spiekermann said, “Rythm, contrast it comes from handwriting…helvetica has none of that”. I loved this because I am intrigued by everyone’s, individual, handwriting or font choices. Or how Paula Scher said that “font could be your own medium”, that was something I hadn’t thought about. I always thought that font was the afterthought to the context. I was cool to hear designers perspectives of fonts. But when I thought about using font as a medium, instead of particularly the content, It seemed like something that I feel you never really know when it is finished. But seeing Stefan Stagmeister’s work, this made more sense. Stagmeister said “when I get bored of working on a typeface, I leave them alone”. That to me made me think of working with fontfaces as like working with pastel, paint, pencil or charcoal. That you can leave things when you feel done, even if others don’t consider it done. Going back to Scher’s point, that the font is the medium. This makes me feel more comfortable with graphic design and working with fontfaces. David Carson said “don’t confuse legibility with understanding”. That secured me in the feeling that working with types doesn’t need to be so “helvetica” all the time. It doesn’t need to be the default that you use, you can choose your own font to use, or multiple fonts. Watching Helvetica broke down the wall for me to look at Graphic Design and not be so scared, but relate to it and feel more comfortable with experimenting.  

Helvetica

Before watching the film Helvetica, I never realized how often the typeface was actually used. The film showed logos and brand names that I never realized used Helvetica. I was especially surprised that I had never noticed that the MTA subway system in New York City used Helvetica. Having visited the city last month, I became very familiar with the subway system and found that it was surprisingly easy to use for someone like myself who did not know the city well. Massimo Vignelli’s decision to use such a simple, clean and familiar typeface like Helvetica may have contributed to how easy it made navigating the New York City subway system. This inspired me to incorporate more simple and timeless elements in my design in order to create an emotional and familiar connection to the viewer.

“I’m obviously a type o maniac, which is an incurable if not a mortal disease. I can’t explain it. I just love, I just like looking at type. I just get a total kick out of it: they are my friends. Other people look at bottles of wine or whatever, or, you know, girls’ bottoms. I get kicks out of looking at type. It’s a little worrying, I admit, but it’s a very nerdish thing to do.” – Erik Spiekermann

Erik Spiekermann

Quote and Poster by Erik Spiekermann

Poster Design by Erik Spiekermann

When I heard this quotation, I instantly related to it. Although it may be a nerdish thing to do I have always loved looking at different typefaces and their layout. Similar to Spiekermann, I have always been the person in the group to pick up a book cover or a product’s packaging to point out how interesting and clever the type or design was.

“Helvetica has almost like a perfect balance of push and pull in its letters. And that perfect balance sort of is saying to us – well it’s not sort of, it *is* saying to us don’t worry, any of the problems that you’re having, or the problems in the world, or problems getting through the subway, or finding a bathroom… all those problems aren’t going to spill over, they’ll be contained. And in fact, maybe they don’t exist.” – Leslie Savan 

I remember hearing this quotation and agreeing with it very strongly after seeing all of the ways Helvetica is used in our daily lives. It is true that Helvetica often solves our problems through giving directions, helping us recognize brands, and guiding us through our tax forms. It is the ultimate typeface of problem-solving and Helvetica’s simple and clean design reassures us that everything will be okay.

Leslie Savan

“The Sponsored Life” by Leslie Savan

“The Swiss pay more attention to the background so that the counters and the space between characters just hold the letters. I mean you can’t imagine anything moving; it is so firm. It, not a letter that bent to shape; it’s a letter that lives in a powerful matrix of surrounding space. It’s… oh, it’s brilliant when it’s done well.” – Mike Parker

I found this quote to be rather intriguing because I think people often overlook negative and surrounding space of a typeface. When passing by a sign that uses Helvetica, all anyone does is read and move on with their day. If someone were to really look at the space surrounding the typeface they would find that the space surrounding the text is just as important. Although this may be something only designers look at it, I think it is a good habit for everyone to get into.

Mike Parker

Mike Parker “Godfather of Helvetica”

The Target logo is one of many logos that uses Mike Parker’s Helvetica.

Helvetica

I thought the movie was very informing, before I was not very aware of the history of typefaces or how it had been influenced/created. This movie moved throughout history by interviewing graphic designer and art directors from the time and their experience and lastly how this functioning art evolved.

Wim Crouwel had this to say about Helvetica “The meaning is in the content of the text and not in the typeface, and that is why we loved Helvetica very much.” This is a modern, clean, clear, legible typestyle. Making it the perfect neutral typeface to use within the commercial business. This typeface was created on a grid by Max Miedinger with Eduard Hoffmann in 1957 in Switzerland.

image by Wim Crouwel                          Wim Crouwel

By this typeface becoming so popular and becoming the norm for the typeface in the word it had influenced graphic artist and art directors to start looking at words in a different way to provide and alternative looking typefaces. This begins a movement of artist like David Carson experimenting with design. David Carson was quoted in this movie. “Don’t confuse legality with communication just because something is legible doesn’t mean it communicates and, more important doesn’t mean it communicates the right thing” which I think perfectly describes his work. His work has a message more important then the message trying to convey within the words, he adds the emotion to the words by altering these things placement, spaces, portion, and weight.

David Carson                                        image by: David Carson

This movie also goes in-depth about Erik Spiekermann who created typefaces that used words to communicate a message in a less “grunge”/abstract style. In fact it looked more personal as he describes in this quote “A real typeface needs rhythm, needs contrast, it comes from handwriting, and that’s why I can read you’re handwriting, you can read mine” His work look like hand writing with little creative thing to give it definition of style.

Erik Spiekermann                  images by: Erik Spiekermann

Graphic Design is…

For as long as I can remember I have wanted to pursue a career involving design. Therefore, declaring my major in graphic design was no question. Since I was a child, I have always paid close attention to detail, my eyes would light up at magazine covers and frequently recognized different company logos. I have always been fascinated with the large role graphic design plays in our everyday life. Through street signs, product packaging, logos, and even just text we can observe the powers of graphic design. It gives me the greatest sense of joy to one day be apart of spreading and creating the power of graphic design as my career. I look forward to expanding my knowledge in order to create more creative and powerful pieces of design.

Although I have always known I wanted a career in graphic design, I haven’t always been sure as to which area of graphic design I would enjoy most. After reading “What is Graphic Design” I was able to narrow down which areas I would enjoy most. The areas I am the most interested in and would like to focus on in my career are Publication Design and Brand and Identity Design. 

PUBLICATION DESIGN 

As someone who enjoys looking through magazines and newsletters in order to observe design techniques, I have often imagined myself being a publication designer. Although I think it may be challenging to represent different elements such as fashion or business in publications, I enjoy the challenge of looking further beyond the most obvious solution. Publication design allows a wide variety of solutions and strategies, forcing the designer to work out of their comfort zone. As a publication designer you never really are designing the same thing. Every publication or issue is quite different, therefore, allowing more creativity from the designer. If I were able to get a job as a graphic designer at this very moment, I would love for it to involve publication design.

Comma Arts Magazine              |          Uncrate Magazine            |      Works that Work Issues

BRAND AND IDENTITY DESIGN 

Another form of graphic design I find intriguing and would love to be apart of is brand and identity design. I love the idea of being apart of a brand or business’s process of creating a recognizable and emotional response from customers. With each brand’s identity being different from another, a new idea and solution for a design is always possible and ready to be created. I would enjoy designing for a brand or business because not only would my design be a part of their identity, but because I will have gotten to experience creating that identity with the client. However, I imagine brand and identity design to be quite challenging considering a new and very unique design is needed for every client.

examples of brand identity design:

Design Envy                             |                           Comma Arts                                  |               Logo Design Love

Graphic Design

I’d never really had an interest in graphic design until I took a class in high school, and found that it was a form of art that I really enjoyed and felt successful in. I hope to be able to continue using the skills I learn from graphic design and all that goes into it in my everyday life while in college and after graduation.

Once I’d read further into the forms of graphic design that exist, I found that I really enjoy publication design and brand and identity design, because they show two completely separate worlds of design while still tying together the importance of showcasing one specific thing. I also feel that these two areas are very important to lifestyles in which we live today. 

Publication Design

I feel that publication design is interesting because I it’s a way to express how an article or piece of writing has affected you. I believe it allows for personal ideas to be placed into a work while still allowing for the writing to be effective and powerful. I’ve also noticed that I’m more likely to read something if there’s an interesting design or object which goes along with the article. For instance, if an article in the newspaper is discussing the dangers of prescription drugs, a  publication designer might add to the piece with images that show the negative effects of prescription drug use or a tipped over bottle with pills spilling out, and these imagines will help bring the reader even further into the writing. I like how it can enhance the impact of something and make it even more memorable overall.

Habits of a Publication Designer

Ruth Ansel

Cipe Pineles

Brand and Identity Design

Brand and identity design is really interesting to me because it’s a way of making something it’s own thing. During the graphics course I took in the past, I was instructed to think of a business, and then create a logo around it. This was really enjoyable for me because I took the idea of a business and what I wanted from it, and gave it it’s own identity. I’d chosen a coffee shop as my base idea, and ended up creating a logo that wasn’t the same as every other coffee shop logo out there. In order to make a unique logo, I had to consider all other logos out there and think about what hasn’t been done yet, which kept me working on the piece and improving it as much as I could. I feel that this type of design is important and memorable, because it can be seen everywhere. Starbucks Coffee is a successful brand, and it’s known for it’s logo that was created by a brand and identity designer who had to look at other coffee shops and find a way to make a unique and unforgettable image. 

About Paula Scher

Milton Glaser

Why Graphic Design?

I have never really thought to learn about Graphic Design or what it is all about until recently. When I graduate and get my degree from Keene I am hoping to start up my own business. With this goal in mind, I want to learn not only the management aspects of owning a business but all aspects of it. With that being said, Graphic Design could be a big part in my business involving the design aspects of it. Including the signs, menus, advertisements and more. If I learn about Graphic Design now, it can intrigue me and enlighten me on all it has to offer.

After reading “What is Graphic Design” I got to learn about all different types of designs and some intrigued me more than others. The two designs that excited me were Motion Design & Brand Design. Below I explain what intrigued me most regarding these two different designs. As well as some links to great websites involving Motion and Brand design, and images of each type of design.

Motion Design

Regarding Motion Design, I got interested in the areas in which this design comes to play. Some of these that interested me include in film making, animation, and visual effects. It intrigues me when sound and motion come together with pictures and words to make them kind of, come alive, and pop. This is a type of design that I find to be exciting because it makes it so real. My personality is very loud, outgoing and bold. This type of design seems to go well with my personality because it is so bold in itself and turns something original into something out there and different, different is a good thing.

Links:   Motion Design Inspiration  ~  The Latest Motion Design   ~  Build Remarkable Animation  

Brand Design

Brand Design excited me mostly because of what I want to do after college, which as I said was owning my own business. A huge part of owning your own business and having that business become successful is the branding of it. The biggest thing I find important about this type of design is the design of the logo for my business. As said in the chapter, the goal is to create a comfort zone for the general publicly presenting a familiar face to the name. Branding is something so cool and original, not one brand is the same to another and that just amazes me. When I own my own business I personally think the Brand Design aspects it will be one of the most exciting things to work on with a great designer.

Links:    What Makes a Great Logo    ~    Iconic Logo Designers      ~      Logo Inspiration

When we first started to watch Helvetica, I wasn’t sure what to expect. From a movie only involving one font I didn’t think there could be too much to learn.

I was wrong.

I never seemed to realize how big of a deal one typeface was, and how common Helvetica was around the world. Watching the movie, I found it fascinating how much we see Helvetica everywhere we go to the point where we are so used to it we don’t even think twice about it. I also thought it was cool that one typeface could be used almost everywhere and yet people still find a way to have their sign, billboard, or whatever else is in Helvetica, pop for customers or people to see it and be intrigued. Helvetica is one type, but that one type is used in so many ways to attract so many people. After watching this movie, i’m going to start looking around me to see all the ways Helvetica is being portrayed around me.

Below are some quotes from the film Helvetica…

“It’s not the notes its the spaces between that make the music” -Massimo Vignalli

“It’s air, you know it’s just there there’s no choice you have to breathe, so you have to use Helvetica.” -Erik Spikermann

“The perfume of the city, we don’t notice it but would miss it if it wasn’t there” -Lars Muller

The reason these quotes spoke to me were because in each of them it just shows how powerful Helvetica really is to us, even us who don’t realize it. All three of these people, in different parts of the movie explain Helvetica as something so normal, and basic, but something that can’t be taken away. If Helvetica was changed to a different type face, the world would notice, and things could be effected.  It just goes to show, how important typeface really is.

More work from the above designers…

Massimo Vignalli 

   Erik Spikermann

Lars Muller