Documenting the history of graphic design from a personal, growing archive and a series of lectures and workshops.
The Graphic Design Archive
Hi, my name is Matt Lamont and I have collected printed matter for over a decade. Design Reviewed is a personal project dedicated to digitally preserving graphic design history and documenting the vast visual culture from the last century.
It’s my aim to digitise my entire design collection, whilst offering easy-to-digest articles and interviews to inspire anyone interested in graphic design history.
Historic Graphic Design Articles
A selection of graphic design articles based on the design artefacts in the archive. Articles discussing aspects of design such as logos, advertisements, posters and book covers. Explore historical context and its impact on the field of graphic design.
By drawing on historical design artefacts, the articles provide valuable insight into the evolution of graphic design as a discipline and its ongoing impact on visual culture.
- Design Archive Feature
The advertising has a certain contrast of hand-drawn and mechanical. Produced entirely in black, it reminds us that the absence of colour can be highly effective. Hans Michel and Günther Kieser's illustrations bring a sense of both playfulness and a stylistic approach to a corporate client.
- Design Archive Feature, Members Only Content
A fantastic example of Swiss design for brand systems is the brand and advertising by Siegfried Odermatt commissioned by Grammo Studio in Zurich.
- Design Archive Feature
A review of the memorial exhibition of Edward McKnight Kauffer at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1955 by F.H.K. Hernion
Design History Workshops and Lectures
Interested in graphic design history workshops?
I can bring a selection of the archive to your organisation/class and provide an interactive/tactile presentation. This approach allows participants to engage with the artefacts in a tangible way, providing an engaging learning experience.
Design history lectures can also be conducted online to reach audiences overseas for remote learning opportunities and flexibility, providing a more accessible learning experience.
Graphic Designer Profiles
- Designer Profile
Karl Oskar Blase was born in 1925 in Cologne, Germany. He was a prolific painter, designer, sculptor and exhibition curator. His work included magazine covers, for publications such as Form and Gebrauchsgraphik, stamp designs for the German Postal Service and film posters for companies such as Atlas Films.
- Designer Profile
Olle Eksell is well known for his advertising illustration, book jackets and playful packaging design. He first studied engineering and later decided to become a graphic artist. He began his career as a window decorator in 1935, and studied under Hugo Steiner between 1939 and 1941.
- Designer Profile
Ken was born in 1929, in Southampton and grew up in a small market town in North Devon. He was a principled man, with strong values and views against the hyper-consumerism we live with today. Ken studied at the London Central School of Arts and Crafts in the 1950s and was taught by Herbert Spencer, Anthony Froshaug and Jesse Collins. Whilst at the School he studied alongside designers Ken Briggs, Alan Fletcher and Colin Forbes.