A Typeface By Any Other Name

Once you identify it, you'll see it everywhere

WHAT TYPEFACE IS THIS? You’ve probably never thought about it, but magazine publishers certainly do. A designer choosing a typeface is like a director casting a role. I just Netflixed a fascinating documentary called Helvetica, which is about the development and use of that font. The year was 1957, the era was post-war, and the mood was idealism. Helvetica was modern. It was so clean and neutral that it allowed the meaning of the content to shine through unemcumbered. Typefaces follow trends. When Working World was launched in 1988, Helvetica had fallen out of favor and I refused to use it. The face looked too boring, too corporate. The design at the time was trending towards grunge, towards crazy creativity and hand-drawn type. We had a guy who worked as a freelance ad builder and I absolutely hated his style. “Mr. Helvetica Bold,” I called him. It was a grave insult.