Helvetica. A New Typeface?

The exhibition, “Helvetica. A New Typeface?”, organised and produced by DHUB in collaboration with the Fundació Comunicació Gràfica (FGC), spotlights the typeface created by the Swiss typographer, Max Miedinger, in 1957.

The exhibition includes a timeline of Helvetica’s consolidation over the last fifty years with a view to understanding its role in the history of design, as well as its antecedents and its subsequent influence.

The itinerary, however, starts out with a selection of local works, highlighting the top-quality design of current and past creations whose common denominator is their use of Helvetica.

On display are exhibits by both young designers and consolidated studios, notably David Ruiz, Pablo Martín and the studio Lo Siento, among others. Also featured are works by local designers who pioneered successful use of the typeface, including Ricard Giralt Miracle, Josep Pla-Narbona and Enric Satué.

The exhibition, on view at DHUB Montcada from 2 December to 7 March, pays modest homage to this typeface whose evolution accounts for much of 20th-century design.

Venue: DHUB, Montcada 12 (Barcelona)
Open: Tuesday to Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and public holidays, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Price:Admission free

Screening and Conference

Helvetica, Gary Hustwit, 2007, 80 min
Conference: Experimental Jetset

Can typography be political? Helvetica shows that it is not only the content, but also the form, that conveys the message. This film offers a fascinating presentation of the history of this legendary typeface, from its production to its proliferation in public life.

For more than 50 years Helvetica has been used to write – and indeed, has written – the history of our relationship to objects and the messages that inhabit public space. The film presents interviews with prestigious designers who reflect on the creative work, the aesthetic discussions and the political repercussions implicit in the use of a typeface.

Experimental Jetset is a small, independent graphic design studio based in Amsterdam, consisting of three persons: Marieke Stolk, Danny van den Dungen and Erwin Brinkers. They often describe graphic design as “turning language into objects”.

Activity organised in conjunction with Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA) as part of the exhibition «Helvetica. A new typeface?» and the MACBA project on text and speculative imagination «The Malady of Writing».

Open: 4th february 2010
Time: 19 h
Venue: MACBA Auditorium (plaça dels Àngels, 8. Barcelona) . Free admission. Limited seating. Simultaneous interpretation service available.

Further information
MACBA

Credits
Organised and produced: Disseny Hub Barcelona (DHUB)
Curator: Fundació Comunicació Gràfica
Scientific Committee: Claret Serrahima, Òscar Heredero, Jaume Pujagut, Pablo Martín & Òscar Guayabero
Graphic Design: Laura Meseguer
Photography: Xavi Padrós
Audiovisuals: Mich Micenmacher, Jordi Serra
Exhibition design: XNF Arquitectes