I love Helvetica. In fact, my first order of business when writing this blog post (and every blog post, for that matter) was choosing Helvetica Neue UltraLight as my typeface. This act has become an unconscious ritual every single time I open a new word doc.
But it wasn’t until reading that Mike Parker, the ‘Godfather’ of Helvetica, passed away this past February that I stopped to evaluate why I have grown so fond of—and become ceaselessly loyal to—this famed font.
When Content Imitates Form
Being an artist, I strive for aesthetic perfection in everything. As client services manager for this NYC copywriting service, writing opens an exciting new doorway, a chance for the finished product to physically (digitally) emulate my ideas, and their development and context. Whether on my personal blog (with 300 hungry daily readers) or here, my voice is contemporary, incisive, and confident. It goes without saying that its representative font be these things, too. And Helvetica Neue UltraLight is—to me—the embodiment of my voice in color, crispness, and contour.
The font gives back, too. When I see my writing take form so cleanly and crisply, it eggs me on to write cleaner, crisper, and with more cut and edge. As a great copywriter once said, “words and pictures are in love.” I couldn’t agree more.
A Design Icon Lives On
So RIP, Mike Parker. I’m not the only blogger endlessly inspired by you. You’re the only font inventor to have a feature-length documentary made in your honor. Thank you for helping creatives everywhere write beautifully. Thank you for making our words beautiful to look at. Thank you for contributing so enduringly to my own process, and making blogging and writing a limitless pleasure.
