Helvetica

• Helvetica was created in 1957 during the emergence of Swiss style in the 1950's. There was a feeling of idealism that design is partial to rebuild and be more democratic. This means it has a sense of social mobility giving it power and hierarchy above other typefaces. Helvetica is clear, readable and straightforward therefore it became incredibly popular for signs and corporate systems, it is even used for the IRS tax forms.
• Massimo Vignelli created New York City's transit signage. He has an extremely positive view on the typeface and believes type should not be expressive because without helvetica we are surrounded by "visual disease." He says type is like music, it is not about the notes but more about the spacing in the notes.
• Although Helvetica is such a popular typeface, not everyone agrees that it should be used. Erik Spiekerman states that real type needs rhythm and contrast, however Helvetica does not. He says it is a default font that is never going to go away which means it becomes repetitive and boring. He says helvetica has a human like quality to it which is positive in communicating to the wider audience yet not to Spiekerman as he thinks the aim of type design is to look familiar.
• Design writer, Rick Poynor calls helvetica the law of diminishing returns, meaning the more the public see it then the more the designer uses it. This ultimately makes the typeface incredibly familiar and predictable. By the 70's there was a huge reaction against the conformity of the "dull blanket of same-ism" that helvetica created. This specific way of design is imposing on the world and something that came out of idealism by this time became routine and there was a huge need for change.
• Despite the split views of helvetica, it is universal which means it is used everywhere. It is the ultimate typeface because it is available in so many platforms, giving it a feeling of finality, it is the typeface that says everything yet why is it so popular? The fact it is everywhere makes it arguably the "safe" option.

American Airlines logo

The American Airlines logo was created in 1966 by Massimo Vignelli. The first thing you notice about this logo is the obvious use of colour, Vignelli said "what could be more American than red and blue" and he is right in saying this as the colour is the most obvious thing about the logo. I don't think there is much more to the colour than the fact he used red and blue to represent the American flag, this reiterates what Vignelli said about it being typically American. Typically to his work, the font used is helvetica which gives the logo a clean and formal look to it as he was very keen on the concept of modernism. Vignelli only uses at most 3 typefaces with helvetica being his most used in many of his logo designs, the font used creates a neutral and transparent effect to it. The designer is trying to communicate America as a country and their proudness of the airline being established and efficient.  

American Apparel logo

The American Apparel logo is arguably very similar to the American Airlines logo, despite the fact they are both in Helvetica font the kerning is also very similar, the American Apparel logo is slightly closer together and there is a bigger gap between the two words. Therefore, there is a lot more negative space around the logo meaning white is a very predominant colour as well as the bold black font giving a high impact when the logo is placed into context. I do not find this logo very engaging, however the simple no fuss means it has become instantly recognisable and iconic, the close kerning on the logo means it can be easily applied in context to numerous platforms and it still work just as well. 

Muji logo

The Muji logo is a bit more different to the other two logos, they are different to many other logos because it is distinguished by its design minimalism and no logo or brand policy. This reflects through its logo as they have chosen to use helvetica as their typeface, helvetica can be viewed as a minimalistic font which is what the company is recognised by. They do not put much money into their branding and designing so they intend for their logo to be simple which allows more emphasis on the brand itself and I think that is what the designer of the logo is trying to communicate. The designer has approached the design of the logo in this way to reflect the brands identity and not draw away from what they believe in.