“I Love New York” (stylized as “I ❤ NY“) is a slogan, logo, and song that form the basis of an advertising campaign developed by the marketing firm of Wells Rich Greene. The campaign was commissioned by the New York State Department of Economic Development in the 1970s to promote tourism in the state, particularly in New York City, which was facing high crime rates and near bankruptcy at the time.
The logo was designed by renowned graphic designer Milton Glaser in 1976 in the back of a taxi. The original drawing is held in the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan. The logo consists of the capital letter “I”, followed by a red heart symbol, and then the capital letters “N” and “Y”. The heart symbol in the logo has a small black spot that symbolizes the World Trade Center site, approximating its location on lower Manhattan Island.
The font used in the “I Love NY” logo is very similar to a rounded slab serif called American Typewriter, which was designed by Joel Kaden and Tony Stan in 1974. This font is commercially available and can be purchased and downloaded for use.
There is another fan-made font called Typo Slab Irregular which is 100% free has some similarities with the logo.
The “I Love NY” campaign has been highly successful and the logo has become an iconic symbol of love and pride for New York. It is widely distributed and imitated around the world, and its simple construction has been used to express love for many other destinations.
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