Last night I watched the Blu-Ray of the movie HELVETICA which is available on DVD and Blu-Ray via Netflix and Amazon etc. This is a must see for anyone with an interest in design in general or certainly if you’re the least bit interested in typography.
It’s amazing how Helvetica is literally everywhere! I had no idea it was so prevalent and ubiquitous. You simply won’t look at fonts, advertising and logos the same way again after seeing this film. Think Apple, Target, American Airlines, American Apparel, Jeep and thousands more. They are all examples of companies that use Helvetica. It’s on street and store signs, public bathroom and transit signs-everywhere!
The film does a pretty good job of explaining how Helvetica came to be, and why the heck it’s all over the place. It also presents opposing viewpoints from experts who totally despise the font. But many designers view it as the most perfect font ever created.
I was blown away by this film and how an invention created many years ago could remain so timeless and still be used so much today with no signs of it appearing at all dated.
By the way, if you’re reading this, you’re looking at Helvetica! (UPDATE 11/8/08-Helvetica is up top at the navbar, post text is now Lucida Grand)
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by Tristan
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