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Helvetica

Understanding Helvetica

I wasn’t sure what to expect from a movie that revolved a singular font. Looking back now I think I found parts of it more interesting than I thought it would be, but it still had flaws. I appreciated learning the history of the font, and in turn learning more about the history of font making and graphic design in general. It was also interesting to get a look into graphic design culture, some of the big names from it, and all the varying professional opinions on such an influential font. It definitely surprised me how often this particular font was used and how I’d never noticed it. However, this is also where it felt like the film began to fail. After a while, opinions and facts seemed to repeat, and the movie felt stretched out to be a little longer than it should’ve been. Overall, though, it was fascinating to get a look at a deeper understanding of Helvetica and the influences it as a typeface can make in peoples lives.

Helvetica Quotes

“Don’t confuse legibility with communication. Just because something is legible doesn’t mean it communicates and, more importantly, doesn’t mean it communicates the right thing.”

—David Carson

This is something I feel is deeply important to graphic design as a whole. It’s essentially the whole philosophy of graphic design; it’s taking words or images and manipulating them for a deeper meaning towards the viewer. If it only had to be legible it wouldn’t be graphic design.

 

“Maybe the feeling you have when you see particular typographic choices used on a piece of packaging is just “I like the look of that, that feels good, that’s my kind of product.” But that’s the type casting its secret spell.”

—Rick Poyner

I like this quote because it represents one of the biggest thoughts I felt the movie was trying to get across to the viewers. That typeface is something we see every day but don’t truly consider it’s effect on us. Our entire opinion about something can be molded by something as simple as the font and we don’t even think about it.

 

“You can say “I love you” in Helvetica. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want it be really fancy. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it’s really intensive and passionate. And it might work.”

—Massimo Vignelli

This is another quote I think really emphasizes the affect the design of a typeface has on people. Even something as simple as the font being bolder changes how you read, feel, and perceive it in your head. It’s an emotional response that graphic designers have to understand for their work.