McCain's typeface
- Started
- Last post
- 6 Responses
- doesnotexist
If you're a NY Times subscriber:
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytim…If not:
By STEVEN HELLER
Can a typeface truly represent a presidential candidate? It depends on the typeface and the candidate. John McCain’s printed material relies on Optima, a modernistic sans serif designed by the German type designer Hermann Zapf in 1958 that was popular among book and magazine designers during the 1970s.While it is not the most robust sans serif ever designed, it is not entirely neutral either. It embodies and signifies a certain spirit and attitude. And if a typeface is not just an empty vessel for meaning, but a signifier that underscores personality, then it is useful in understanding what the candidates’ respective typefaces are saying about them and their campaigns.
So, I asked various designers, design curators and critics, who get rather heated when it comes to analyzing type design, to weigh in on two questions regarding Senator McCain’s campaign logo set in a bold version of Optima: What does Optima say about John McCain? And should this, or any, candidate be judged by a typeface?
*****
Michael Bierut, partner, PentagramVietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington D.C. (Photo: Jamie Rose for The New York Times)
When I saw John McCain’s Optima, the first thing I thought was that it’s the same font used for the carving of all the names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Maybe this is a coincidence, but even if so, it’s certainly very apropos. Optima is a sans serif. The thicks and thins we associate with serifs might be said to correspond with the reputation of bipartisanship that Mr. McCain has demonstrated as a senator.If you compare it to that incredibly bold, aggressively italic font that Bush and Cheney used in 2004, it looks mild.
Yet judging a candidate by his or her choice of typeface isn’t much more than a parlor game in the end. For one thing, it assumes that they actually choose their typefaces, which seems unlikely to me. But in a campaign season that seems to have an endless appetite for minutiae, I’d rather talk about the candidates’ graphic design tastes than, say, their sex lives!
*****
Debbie Millman, president of design, Sterling BrandsWhile I doubt that Senator McCain studied the subtle nuances of this popular face it says to me that his crafty design team aggressively attempted to appeal to voters with more traditional inclinations as well as those with slightly more progressive leanings. However, this multifaceted effort could easily backfire: it is still a rather bland face being used in a rather bland way.
Like a good pair of shoes and a well-cut suit, type makes the man (or woman). Consider typography to be the window into the soul of the candidate’s campaign. The depth, the breadth, the good, the bad and the ugly is all there for us to witness and assess in one clear and telegraphic manner. And in this campaign, what you see is definitely what you will get.
*****
Ellen Lupton, curator of contemporary design, Cooper-Hewitt National Design MuseumLt. Commander John S. McCain III arriving at Jacksonville Naval Air Station on March 18, 1973. (Associated Press)
Optima attempted to merge characteristics of serif and sans serif typefaces. You could call it a centrist font. I’m sure John McCain’s design consultants know that Optima is the typeface used on Maya Lin’s Vietnam Memorial. Mr. McCain’s image is inexorably tied to his status as a war hero; this is his story, and Optima helps him tell it.Everything can be judged by its typeface, even a candidate. Although many people don’t acknowledge it, they are constantly influenced by typography.
Experiencing good typography is like walking into a well-lit room. You may not stop to analyze it, but good lighting makes you feel better, and if it makes a sudden change for the worse, you will know it.
*****
Seymour Chwast, illustrator and designer, Pushpin StudioOptima is one of the worst pre-computer typefaces ever designed. It was created to satisfy everybody’s needs. A straightforward, no-nonsense, no-embellishment face, it comes in regular and bold but little character can be found in either weight.
Optima is not inappropriate for use by Senator McCain.
*****
Jerry Kelly, type historianOptima set in bold is being used, which is not the normal weight. The normal (medium) weight of Optima speaks to me of elegance, refinement, modernity (well, at least late 20th century) and a new classicism. But Optima in bold is very different; a bold speaks of strength, which I assume is what John McCain wants to communicate, along with a little timeless classicism. Just to cite one aspect of this classicism: the capital M in Optima is splayed, as in the Trajan column and other fonts following the Trajan/Roman inscriptional model. Most faces have an M with upright verticals.
There is also Optima Black. If he’s using the black it’s even more of an expression of strength, but with an underlying softer side. Of course, if you want pure strength you’d go for City or News Gothic, both in bold.
*****
Paul Shaw, calligrapher and type designer, teaches the history of typography at School of Visual ArtsOptima is closely associated with fashion and cosmetics, including Estée Lauder and others. Thus, it seems a bit elitist and upscale for John McCain. But he uses the bold version, which may be a way of trying to diminish these associations and gain some heft and blue-collar-ness. Nonetheless, Optima still fails to be an ordinary guy, straight-talking typeface, no matter what. It is an odd choice for him.
I don’t think the type is chosen with great care or knowledge but more from a gut level sense. And, I suspect, many faces are chosen simply because the people involved do not have a wide awareness of what is available and only choose from default menus or what is being offered by their suppliers.
*****
Matthew Carter, type designer and a principal of Carter & Cone TypeThe moment of typographic truth will come when Senator McCain picks a vice presidential running mate and two names have to be combined on banners and bumper stickers. By choosing Optima, a rather distinctive typeface, he may have seriously limited his options.
I set the possible names in a bold weight of Optima caps and certain things became clear. HUCKABEE looks awkward in Optima, and ROMNEY is afflicted with the same difficult ‘EY’ combination that has plagued the current vice presidency. Perhaps because Optima is a German typeface, the word SCHWARZENEGGER looks predictably good.
Although it’s German, Optima took its inspiration from Quattrocento inscriptional lettering in the cathedrals of Florence and Siena, which may explain why GIULIANI looks so simpatico. In the end, however, my research suggests that the optimal running mate — so long as you don’t have to typeset her first name — is RICE.
*****
Gael Towey, chief creative officer, Martha Stewart Omni MediaOptima is making a come back and feeling modern again. Personally I have never liked it very much because I have considered it neither here nor there — middle of the road, not committed to be a serif face or a sans serif. It is interesting that John McCain who would be one of the oldest presidents we have ever had — should he be elected — is trying to appear modern by using a modern feeling typeface.
*****
Cyrus Highsmith, typeface designerFor some reason, almost every dentist and orthodontist seems to use Optima for their letterhead. Therefore, while Optima is a great typeface I tend to associate with getting teeth drilled.
*****
Paola Antonelli, curator of architecture and design, Museum of Modern ArtOptima is progressive and humane. For those of Senator McCain’s generation, it was the future (used for Expo ‘67, albeit in small caps). But it’s also cast in stone, coming from ancient Rome: It says I’m also a hero, I’m made all of one piece, strong, straight, reliable, solid ground under your feet, a soldier.
*****
Thomas Porostocky, art director, I.D. MagazineWith a mix of Roman dignity and a subtle military presence, the typeface communicates the qualities seemingly most important to the candidate; honor and virtue. One could also say there is a slight sense of quirkiness that is also apparent in the candidate. But it is still a safe choice.
There is a certain top-down mentality that filters down to the smallest detail in every decision. Somebody had to think about the qualities communicated by each typeface and make the connection between Optima and John McCain.
Is it all just superficial? I don’t think so, but even if it was, it can’t be ignored. We judge many things in life based on pure superficialities, and I don’t think politics is immune. Some people pick candidates because their name sounds nice, or because a certain candidate reminds them of their favorite uncle. Ideally, the voting public would be well informed about each candidate, but often times, which way one votes is decided by the smallest detail.
*****
Jessica Helfand, graphic designer, WinterhouseOther than its name, which might possibly suggest “optimizing” one’s chances of winning, or choosing the “optimum” candidate, it is a typeface I associate with the 1970s: moving past the hygienic purity of, say, a humanist sans-serif and migrating ever so slightly toward fern bars and big hair. (It is, however, a really beautiful metal typeface, if you favor the capitals and use generous letter spacing.)
I absolutely believe a candidate can be chosen by his typeface. That undulating baseline on Comic Sans is just precarious enough to make you doubt a person’s stability; something bold and confident like Akzidenz Grotesk could easily migrate into full-blown stability, which, while arguably reassuring, could, in some instances, conjure the idea of inflexibility. Serifs say classic but scream old, although Georgia would be a brilliant choice because it is the best online typeface, reads well at all sizes, looks modern but includes non-aligning oldstyle figures.
*****
Art Chantry, graphic designerOptima is the ultimate noncommittal typeface. It’s a sans-serif typeface with the suggestion of false serifs. It’s also a serif typeface without serifs. Either way, it’s a half-truth. Optima is the best typeface for appeal to all viewers and projecting sophistication without really having sophistication. It’s a typeface used to trick people into thinking they are involving themselves in something more important and more desirable than it actually is. The bottom line with Optima is the bottom line: “Nothing personal, it’s only business...”
We choose typefaces based on inner, gut reactions. A typeface has to “feel” right in order to be the “right” typeface to use.
*****
Drew Hodges, director, SpotCoOptima always says to me ’70s nerd — perhaps because I was one — but it sort of reeks of old thrift-shop, Danish furniture, and not in a good way; not in a Dansk pepper mill way.
Obviously, no one can be judged exclusively by single elements of their campaign — only pundits can be that narrow-minded. But it is a sound bite of course, and many sound bites (even if they are visual) can add up to a larger message. Contemporary and forward-looking does have a very different sound than traditional, and elegance in design says strength and confidence to me no matter how it is specifically achieved.
*****
Rudy VanderLans, founder of Emigre TypeWhat does Optima say about Senator McCain? Nothing. It probably says more about the designer than anything else. Who, except designers, would judge a candidate by the typeface?
- doesnotexist0
Optima is one of the worst pre-computer typefaces ever designed. It was created to satisfy everybody’s needs. A straightforward, no-nonsense, no-embellishment face, it comes in regular and bold but little character can be found in either weight.
Optima is not inappropriate for use by Senator McCain.
- utopian0
Great article, Optima does seem to resemble all thing 70's and yesterday. You need remember that McCain is 72 years olds and is completely out of touch with modern society. The typeface does fit his era and his war background.
- mg330
I hate it. It's too corporate and too military looking.
- moamoa0
then I also failed with this logo :( shit
- hey that's nice!doesnotexist
- plus it's german so +2 for youdoesnotexist
- you corporate militant!vrmbr
- yes sir curnel sir.moamoa
- thank you, now I really see some millitary touch in my logo.. fckmoamoa
- flashbender0
when I run for office all my collateral is going to be in Trajan
