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Helvetica

September 23, 2007

Went to see a great documentary yesterday called “Helvetica” - yes - the FONT!!
It looks at the ubiquity of this font in today’s world - or at least the Western world - why some designers love it, some are “over” it, but mostly how it came about (Linotype, Switzerland - 1950’s - most readable font) and how the advent of computers made it even more widespread (it is the default font for computers).
There were many amazingly beautiful still shots all through the movie illustrating Helvetica around the world.
Worth checking out not only from a design point of view but also in terms of niche markets, trends, changes in society, and even cognitive psychology - why the hell does the eye like Helvetica more than other fonts?
And by the way - this is not Helvetica :)