Futura

    Today I wanted to talk a bit about my favorite typeface, Futura. I've always had an affinity for geometric sans-serif typefaces, but I think it was the immense popularity of Helvetica that ultimately led me to Futura. I was tired of the over saturation of Helvetica in the design world, and so I found myself subbing in Futura whenever I had the urge to put Helvetica in a design. When it came time to design some spreads based on a font for my typography course, I instantly knew which one I would choose. I wanted to emphasize the geometry and modern nature of Futura while simultaneously capitalizing on the 50s vibe (thats when Futura was most popular in America) and Futura's place as the first typeface on the moon. It was difficult because while Futura is great for headlines, it does not work as well for body text. Serif type faces allow the eye to rack lines better than sans serif. Futura also requires a lot more leading in order to read well in paragraphs. There were also certain strange things that the assignment required we include (such as the addition to demonstrate decimals), but overall, I love how it turned out even three years later. Here is just a brief history of the font that I wrote for the assignment:

   Futura is a geometric sans-serif typeface designed in 1927 by Paul Renner.  It was commissioned by the Bauer Type Foundry, in reaction to Ludwig & Mayer’s seminal Erbar of 1922,and released commercially in 1936. The typeface is based on geometric shapes that became representative of visual elements of the Bauhaus design style of 1919–33. The family was originally cast in Light, Medium, Bold, and Bold Oblique fonts in 1928. Light Oblique, Medium Oblique, Demibold, and Demibold Oblique fonts were later released in 1930. Book font was released in 1932. Book Oblique font was released in 1939. Edwin W. Shaar designed the extra Bold font in 1952. Edwin W. Shaar and Tommy Thompson designed extra Bold Italic font in 1955. Matrices for machine composition were made by Intertype. 

    Futura has an appearance of efficiency and forwardness. Renner aimed for pure functionality with his design, with no ornamentation or individual characteristics. The typeface is based on the circle, the most fundamental of all typographic components. Its design is derived from simple geometric forms (near-perfect circles, triangles and squares) and is based on strokes of near-even weight, which are low in contrast. 

    This is most visible in the almost perfectly round stroke of the o, which is nonetheless slightly ovoid. The lowercase has tall ascenders, which rise above the cap line. The uppercase characters present proportions similar to those of classical Roman capitals. Another recognizable characteristic is the pointed triangular apexes that rise above the cap height and fall below the base line. These overshoots, like those on the uppercase a and m, intensify the typeface and give futura an energy that makes it striking. 

    Futura was the first geometric sans serif typeface to become widely popular. While it was conceived for use as body text in books it became popular for headlines in advertising in the 50s.Futura was used on the plaque left by Apollo Eleven astronauts. This means that Futura was the first font on the moon! The typeface was director Stanley Kubrick’s favorite and he used it in many of his movies. The director Wes Anderson also lists futura as his favorite typeface, however Anderson's love of futura borders on obsession. He squeezed it into The Royal Tenenbaums at nearly every opportunity (check out this blog post counting them all http://www.marksimonson.com/notebook/view/RoyalTenenbaumsWorldofFutura)  Futura is also used in advertisements and logos, notably by IKEA (until 2010), Volkswagen,Royal Dutch Shell, Crayola and HP in their print ads. It remains one of the most popular sans-serif typefaces today.