The New Yorker is an American magazine founded in 1925 by Harold Ross, with Rea Irvin serving as its first art editor. The publication’s visual identity is built around a typographic wordmark that has remained remarkably consistent for nearly a century, making it one of the most enduring mastheads in magazine publishing.
Design and History
The New Yorker’s logo and display typeface were created by Rea Irvin, whom founding editor Harold Ross hand-picked as the magazine’s art consultant. Irvin introduced the lettering now known as “Irvin type” to the public in 1925, alongside the essential cover design that still appears on newsstands today. Irvin adapted the lettering from an alphabet drawn by Allen Lewis, an American etcher and woodcutter trained in Paris. A 1958 memo in the New York Public Library’s New Yorker records notes that Irvin saw Lewis’s pamphlet “Journeys To Bagdad,” which was drawn to simulate a woodcut, and liked it so well that he approached Lewis about creating an entire alphabet. Lewis declined the job and suggested Irvin proceed with it himself. [1]
Irvin also created “Eustace Tilley,” the high-hatted dandy who appeared on the magazine’s first cover on February 21, 1925, and has appeared on the cover of nearly every anniversary issue since. [1] The Library of Congress confirms that Irvin created both the Eustace Tilley cover portrait and the New Yorker typeface. [2]
Throughout its history, the Irvin typeface has been redrawn and adapted several times. Former art editor Lee Lorenz wrote of a late-1970s redesign: “The Irvin alphabet that we had used for headings was redrawn (the originals were lost, and over the years the metal plates had cracked and worn). The resulting changes, though significant when examined closely, were never commented on by our readers, our contributors, or the press.” [1]
In September 2013, The New Yorker underwent its first major redesign in 13 years. The magazine’s creative director, Wyatt Mitchell, discussed the process in an official video, noting that the most significant changes were to the typefaces, most notably the Irvin typeface. [3] The magazine hired type designer Ben Kiel, then employed at House Industries, to rework and modernize the typeface. Kiel described his work: “Irvin Display is a reworking of the original digital Irvin to have a higher contrast, sharper details, and a bevy of ligatures and alternate letters which draw their inspiration from how Irvin was used in early issues of the New Yorker.” [4]
Meaning and Symbolism
The New Yorker’s logo functions as a powerful identifier for the magazine’s covers. Current art editor Françoise Mouly explained its necessity: “The minute you put the logo on it, it becomes a New Yorker cover. It’s genuinely a typeface of its era, and it’s also clear enough so that it can transcend that.” [1]
The typeface has also become a cultural shorthand. As Ben Yagoda writes in his history of the magazine, About Town: The New Yorker and the World It Made, “With the widespread adoption of computer typesetting in the 1980s, Irvin type, with minuscule variations, became available to any designer who wanted to suggest, however improbably, a product’s upscale urbanity.” [1]
Typography and Design
The Irvin typeface has no lower-case letters throughout its evolution, although exceptions are made for the small “c” in “Mc” and “Mac.” [1] The magazine’s style guide directs that “The New Yorker logo is different than just typing out the letters in the Irvin font. It should always look as originally designed, and should not be stretched, skewed or condensed in any way.” [1]
The 2013 redesign also introduced Neutraface as a secondary typeface for sections such as the index and Goings On About Town. Kiel noted that “Neutraface had its proportions and details modified” as part of the project. [4] The Atlantic reported that the redesign included redrawing the Irvin typeface and introducing Neutraface as a secondary one. [5]
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