Documenting the history of graphic design
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.
My current collection of design artefacts contains over 5,000 artefacts of printed matter, spanning 150 years of graphic design history. From rare graphic and architecturally focused periodicals such as Typografia, Architectural Design and Typographische Monatsblatter and National Theatre programmes designed by Ken Briggs. To mid-century colourful folded maps and illustrated German film posters designed by Hans Hillmann.
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
I came across two sample books containing printed examples of the work executed by the students in the Composing and Machine Departments of the Polytechnic School of Printing, between 1907 and 1910. I couldn't resist adding these to the archive.
Members Content
- Design Archive Feature, Members Only Content
These one-colour forms have a playful but structured aesthetic through their geometric forms, they remind me of the abstract line drawings of Picasso blended with Jan Tschichold and the New Typography.
- Design Archive Feature
When Fritz Gottschalk and Stuart Ash joined forces in Montreal, it was a partnership ideally suited to the city's hybrid environment. Gottschalk's training in graphic design in Switzerland, Paris and London was rigid, his background European; Ash, Canadian born and educated, was trained in the North American fashion, though he was influenced by his work with European designers
- Design Archive Feature
In minor printed matter we constantly meet the new typography, but it is relatively rare to find posters designed on the new lines. And yet poster-designing is a field where new typographical methods might be employed with great effect.
- Design Archive Feature
Armin Hofmann's publicity for the Stadttheater Basel. The client, in this case, the Municipal Theater of Basel, refused to listen to narrow-minded critics, in spite of the fact that as a state-subsidized enterprise it is accountable to public opinion.
- Design Archive Feature
An advertising programme is fully integrated only when its effect is powerful enough to play a major part in determining a corporate image. Geigy advertising is an example of this successful integration.
Graphic 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.
