Reflection Essay History of GIC 4/13/09

It was interesting how the man Paul Rand redefined graphic design in America, turning away from European sources and inventing corporate branding. He was the one who understood the value of graphic forms that were created for symbolic and communicative purposes. Companies saw that Good design was good business, and so branding was seen as a great way to make a reputation of quality and reliability.

- Simplicity enables the viewer to interpret the context immediately.

- "All visual forms carry history"

Ivan Chermayeff and Tom Geismar were creating pieces that were trying to divert American's from European design, and back into the loose and humorous American culture with their graphic design. They and their associates would abstract form unto itself, free from alphabetic, pictographic, or figurative connotations. Television was a new way to spread graphic design. It was a period of firsts, such as the first presidential assassination for the new century. The pioneers of motion graphics; no longer confined to a static image, used timing and sequence in tandem with graphic forms, typography and photographic images. In the '60s, design was changing to include large formats with abundant space for design and photos. Fashion Magazines took the idea of an exquisitely single image conveying a visual idea.

New advertisements used the idea of :

• Visual statements using simple images
• Talk intelligently to the audience
• Focus on benefits of the product

Conceptual strategies for typography was unified with photography by locking text or displaying tightly into the image.

 - Irreverent, flippant copy and polished ironic photography sets a new tone in the industry.

George Lois had very nnovative concepts which grew from his ability to understand and respond to the people and events of his era; staying in touch with the times was vital. He was willing to challenge and shock and provoke his audience. Something that has become mainstream in today's society. During this period, Typography went through another major innovation.  Herb Lubalin created "Photo-Typography" where type was made through photographic process versus metal cuts, it allowed to stack letterforms ontop of each other, and play with form relationships, which essentially made type experiments much easier and cheaper to do. This new flexibility loosened the grip of the international style, letterforms became objects and objects letterforms under the term "figurative typography."