Perhaps you notice the blog’s new look, though probably not. I don’t get a lot of repeat visitors around here. Earlier today I watched Helvectica which inspired me to give my site a more streamlined look. If you’ve seen the movie, or are smarter than me, you know that Helvetica is just about the sleekest font around and rightfully the poster child of Modernism.
In the film, designers debate the merits and curses of such a “perfect” typeface. The very Swiss, very neutral, presence of the letters tends to let the content of the words speak for themselves. Ideally, you don’t even notice their existence. For many new designers, that is where Helvetica fails. By fading into the background, an opportunity to underscore the content, and thus communicate more effectively lost. Beyond that, Helvetica rewards conformity, laying the groundwork for corporate brainwashing and FASCISM. At least, that’s what some argue. Like any battle of aesthetics or ideology, they are both right and wrong. Context is the deciding factor and for the sake of this blog, I think the default font’s form should take a backseat to the subject matter. After all, unless I write the same thing everyday, a more expressive font won’t always fit.
As I write this, Tom waits sings
It’s such a sad old feeling
The fields are soft and green
It’s memories that I’m stealing
but you’re innocent when you dream
Rather a recording of him singing those words plays. The version I’m listening to was on NPR back in July 2008. Enjoy it.