What type of font is helvetica

In , Mike Parker was appointed director of the Mergenthaler Linotype Company , an American firm that sold Linotype typewriters, the first machines to automatically assemble rows of characters. Parker was given the task of expanding the font library owned by the company, and between and he managed to add almost 1,, in many cases adapting pre-existing fonts to suit the technical demands of the Linotype machines. Stempel AG — a German firm that worked in partnership with the Lynotype Company — to redesign and develop the family of fonts.

This new font was renamed Helvetica. The font instantly became an icon of Swiss design, which at the time was seen to epitomise understated elegance and functionality, and throughout the s and s it appeared on numerous advertising posters and billboards across Europe and the USA.

Towards the end of the s, Helvetica was chosen by the designers Massimo Vignelli and Bob Noorda to create the new signage for the New York Metro and the Graphic Standards Manual , one of the most famous visual identity manuals in the history of graphic design. The following year, Steve Jobs decided to include it in the fonts available on the first Macintosh, paving the way for the spread of the digital version of the typeface. So why has Helvetica been so successful? Its appeal undoubtedly stems from its versatility, modern appearance and understated elegance , which make it suitable for everything from posters and instruction manuals to art catalogues.

It creates a homogeneity about all the brand and identity work you see. If you are going to design any graphics or going to work on any web design project then we will highly recommend you to try Helvetica Neue on your projects. Because it will give a more unique look to all of your designs. Helvetica Font Family is a historical-kind serif font stays a trendy replacement for designers who need to inject warmness and romance into their work.

You can find a detailed overview of this font here. There are many things we have to keep in mind before choosing any font. In , director Gary Hustwit developed a documentary film about Helvetica detailing how this typeface has shaped the culture of typography and design.

Little did we know that a simple font like Helvetica can have such impact in the world today. The Helvetica variation continued to grow as the typeface grew in popularity. Some of these variations include:. Helvetica can be commonly mistaken for other san-serif fonts, such as Arial, but there are more details within Helvetica that sets it apart from other fonts. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance.

Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Share Flipboard Email. Jacci Howard Bear. A graphic designer, writer, and artist who writes about and teaches print and web design.