Helvetica's Better Substitutes

Carl Shank • October 19, 2023

Helvetica's Better Substitutes. In the July/August 1995 edition of Adobe Magazine, Robin Williams, a noted typographer, says Helvetica, though immensely popular in the 60s and 70s, became passé. Like the beehive hairdo, Helvetica is continuously used but creates a tired and dated look. He says, "Just because it's on your computer doesn't mean you have to use it. The greatest single thing you could do for your publications is to invest in another sans serif ("without feet") face, one with a strong, bold black version in its family. As with all trends, Helvetica will someday be back in style—in about two hundred years."


He gives in another article some alternatives to Helvetica — ITC Franklin Gothic, Futura, Gill Sans and ITC Stone Sans as examples. And Daniel Will Harris in "Add Impact to Type" in the magazine Technique, March/April 1994 issue, suggests a wide range of alternatives to Helvetica — Agfa Roti's Sans, Avenue, Eras, Formata, Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, Gill Sans, ITC Goudy Sans, Lucida Sans, Optima, Shannon or Univers.


However, I find in hometown newspapers all over, the tired and dated, and boring, use of Helvetica persists. In my hometown, a local printer, well-known and established for many years, uses Helvetica for ads that not only do not stand out, but fail in modern typographical terms. I am sure the rationale for Helvetica's use is that this is the typeface they have used for ages, is the most convenient, is the fastest to use on a compressed time factor, and no one has ever complained. However, there are typographical alternatives to Helvetica, even in a rather traditionally based hometown, that would give better results. I note them below with a copy of a typical ad.


I fully understand that busy print shops and overworked staff, and perhaps not very well trained in modern  typographical practices, simply default to Helvetica. But I believe we can all do better. Note the alternatives below and some information on the alternative typefaces used.

Successful Layout & Design

French Typography History (Part 2)

By Carl Shank • August 24, 2026
Art Nouveau and Paris Between 1500 and 1900 typography evolved from Renaissance humanist forms to industrial mass production and artistic revival. Old style typefaces (like Garamond) moved to Transitional faces (like Baskerville) to Modern/Didone faces (like Didot and Bodoni) to Industrial display types (fat faces, slab serifs, sans serifs) to the Arts & Crafts revivals. Art Nouveau was a reaction against the academicism, eclecticism and historicism of nineteenth century architecture and decorative art. The new art movement had its roots in Britain, in the floral designs of William Morris, and in the Arts and Crafts movement founded by the pupils of Morris. Art Nouveau fonts ( REFERENCE ) grew out of the late nineteenth century Art Nouveau movement (c. 1890–1910). The style flourished across Europe and America in architecture, furniture, illustration, and typography. In lettering, Art Nouveau embraced organic forms, flowing curves, floral motifs, and asymmetry, reflecting the movement’s fascination with natural growth and hand-drawn ornament. Art Nouveau took its name from the Maison de l'Art Nouveau, a Parisian gallery that exhibited the works of artists and designers who were associated with the movement. The style was characterized by flowing, curvilinear forms inspired by natural shapes and motifs such as flowers, vines, and insects. It also incorporated elements from other artistic traditions, such as Japanese art and the Arts and Crafts movement. The work of Alphonse Mucha and the type of Eugene Smauel Grasset (1845–1917) are particularly important to understanding this period. (ILLS) Grasset taught design at the École Guérin from 1890 to 1903, at the École d’Art graphique in the rue Madame from 1903 to 1904, at theAcadémie de la Grande Chaumiere from 1904 to 1913, and at the École Estienne in Paris. Grasset had freely adapted the alphabet of Nicolas Jenson (1471) with the intention of using it to print a book on his own method for ornamental composition, inspired by the courses he gave to the Guérin school. (Wikipedia) The Grasset Typeface (ILLS) from Lewis F. Day's Alphabets Old and New , London, 1910, shows that art nouveau flair for which these men were famous. The font has been digitized by CARE Typography and is offered with a number of other historic fonts for a modest fee. Contact cshanktype@gmail.com for details. Auriol (1901, George Auriol, France). Produced by G. Peignot et Fils foundry, was one of the most widely used Art Nouveau fonts in Paris. It was inspired by Japanese calligraphy. Japanese calligraphy, called Shodo or Shuji, heavily influenced Art Nouveau type. Art Nouveau was particularly popular in Europe, where it influenced a wide range of artistic disciplines, including architecture, interior design, furniture, jewelry, and graphic design. Some of the most notable Art Nouveau architects included Hector Guimard, Antoni Gaudí, and Victor Horta, while artists such as Alphonse Mucha, Aubrey Beardsley, and Gustav Klimt were celebrated for their decorative and ornamental works. By 1910, Art Nouveau was fading. It was seen as overly decorative and was replaced by Art Deco, Plakatstil (poster style), and modernist sans-serifs (e.g., Futura, 1927). Still, Art Nouveau typefaces remained popular in advertising for certain luxury goods. In the 1960s–70s counterculture revival, fonts like Arnold Böcklin were rediscovered and associated with psychedelic posters, bringing Art Nouveau back into fashion. In short, Art Nouveau fonts were display-oriented, highly decorative, and tied to the broader artistic revolt against rigid academic styles. Fonts like Eckmann, Auriol, Bradley, and Arnold Böcklin remain the most recognizable products of the period.

French Typography History (Part 1)

By Carl Shank • August 24, 2026
Parisian Typography History Parisian typography refers broadly to the traditions of type design, printing, lettering, bookmaking, and graphic design that developed in Paris, particularly from the early days of European printing through the modern era. Paris became one of Europe's most important centers of typographic culture, alongside Venice, Rome, Antwerp, Amsterdam, London, and later Berlin. What makes Paris especially significant is that French typography repeatedly combined technical innovation with an unusually strong concern for aesthetics and cultural identity. The French Renaissance established some of the foundations of Western book typography, The Romain du Roi introduced a rationalized approach to letterform construction. Didot transformed the Roman into a highly elegant Modern style, while Parisian poster, fashion, and advertising design subsequently made typography an essential component of visual culture. For a study of European typography, Paris is therefore best viewed not simply as another printing center, but as one of the places where the craft of type, the art of the book, state patronage, intellectual culture, fashion, and graphic design repeatedly converged. Parisian typography in perspective The history of Parisian typography can therefore be understood as a progression through several major phases — Gothic manuscript tradition, to Renaissance humanism, to French Old Style Romans, to Royal/Rational typography, to Romain du Roi, to Didot Modern Roman, and to Industrial display typography. Another way to organize this history would be to note several recurring characteristics of French typography. French typographical elegance can be seen in the developing of refined proportions and carefully controlled letterforms. There was a strong early connection to Roman inscriptions and Renaissance typography. Mathematical order was especially evident in the Romain du Roi typography. Didot established high contrast in lettering and there was strong emphasis on readable, beautiful text typography. Ornamentation became particularly important in the Art Nouveau period. Display typography defined much of posters and advertising typography. Type was often treated as part of French intellectual culture, and Paris repeatedly absorbed international design movements.
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