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Graphic Design History from Design Reviewed
Ikko Tanaka - Japanese Graphic Designer

Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012

Information

Ikko Tanaka poster exhibition catalogue at Ginza Graphic Gallery

Details

  • Format: Exhibition Catalogue
  • Designer/s: Ikko Tanaka
  • Year: 2012
  • Client/Publisher: DNP Cultural Promotion Foundation
  • Size: 220mm x 280mm
Ikko Tanaka was born in 1930 in Nara City. He graduated from the Kyoto School of Fine Arts in 1950 and worked for several companies, including the Osaka Economic Newspaper, before co-founding Nippon Design Center, Inc. In 1963, he established his own firm, the Ikko Tanaka Design Office. Tanaka's awards include a silver medal from the Warsaw International Poster Biennial, the Mainichi Design Award, the New York ADC Award, the Tokyo ADC Membership Award, the Mainichi Art Award, and the Japan Cultural Design Grand Prix.

Linked Information

Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012
Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012

 

Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012
Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012

 

Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012
Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012

 

Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012
Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012
Ikko Tanaka was born in 1930 in Nara City. He graduated from the Kyoto School of Fine Arts in 1950 and worked for several companies, including the Osaka Economic Newspaper, before co-founding Nippon Design Center, Inc. In 1963, he established his own firm, the Ikko Tanaka Design Office. Tanaka's awards include a silver medal from the Warsaw International Poster Biennial, the Mainichi Design Award, the New York ADC Award, the Tokyo ADC Membership Award, the Mainichi Art Award, and the Japan Cultural Design Grand Prix.
More graphic design artefacts
Graphische Revue, 15 Jaargang, Juni 1931
From the design archive:

Graphische Revue, 15 Jaargang, Juni 1931

  • Format: Magazine
  • Year: 1931
View Artefact
Casabella 311, 1966. Design by AG Fronzoni
From the design archive:

Casabella 311, 1966

  • Format: Magazine
  • Designer/s: AG Fronzoni
  • Year: 1966
View Artefact
Aesthetische vorming, W. Versluys, 1950
From the design archive:

Aesthetische vorming, W. Versluys, 1950

  • Format: Book
  • Designer/s: Atze de Leeuw
  • Year: 1950
View Artefact
Craft News (工芸ニュース), Vol.21 No.2, February 1953. Cover design by Hiroshi Ohchi
From the design archive:

Craft News (工芸ニュース), Vol.21 No.2, February 1953

  • Format: Magazine
  • Designer/s: Hiroshi Ohchi
  • Year: 1953
View Artefact

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More graphic design history articles

Members Content

The Swiss designer Adrian Frutiger (1928–2015) created some fantastic typefaces such as Univers, Avenir, and Frutiger, alongside posters, catalogue designs and architectural lettering. He began his career at Deberny & Peignot in Paris as a type designer and set up his own studio in 1960 in Paris focusing on typography and advertising design. Working alongside André Gürtler and Bruno Pfäffli, Frutiger designed many logo designs. Here is a selection of the designs which were featured in Der Druckspiegel, December 1961. I have also translated and rewritten the descriptions to provide more depth. When describing the work of Adrian Frutiger, Kurt Weidemann states, “We live in a time of increasing abstraction,” says Frutiger, in a time of visual, intellectual symbols. If a miller wants a company logo, then a windmill or watermill does not provide a sufficient symbol of his profession. Rather, its job is to crush grains between two masses. Finding a pictorial metaphor for this process might be more difficult, but also more expressive, more apt and timeless. Memorable shapes are simple. A mark that can be immediately drawn in the sand by a child is good. The accompanying typography must not compete with the brand; it must be brought into harmony with it, supporting its expressiveness.) - Der Druckspiegel, October, 1961 (Translated from German) Logo for the advertising agency Arma Publicité. The symbol is based on the letters A R and M. The logo has an emphasised flatness that corresponds to the essence of advertising thanks to its black and white contrast. The triangle shape is a symbol of advancement and dynamism. The embossed form is used in cases requiring discretion. Lettering for the title of a scientific journal. The letterforms are made of straight lines and circles in the spirit of the exact measurements and structures in science. Small and capital letters are mixed together as a deliberate move away from tradition. Business brand for the Brancher Frères paint factory. On the one hand, it is based on the letters B and F, and on the other hand, the silhouettes of the paint can, seen from the side and from above (square and circle). The logo is designed more to the colour than to the formal expression. Original colours: grey, green and blue. Lettering for a printing company. The close sequence of circular elements makes one think of printing cylinders and ink rollers. Logo for the Scripta pantograph milling machine. The arrangement of the arms and joints of the machine have resulted in this S-shape. Right angles were avoided to evoke mobility. The contrast of the strong arms to the fine white space indicates the solidity of a precision device. Company lettering and signs for the Hermann scientific bookstore. The basic element that provided the impetus was the construction plan for the new business facility. Monogram for Jacqueline Iribe, designer of modern decorative fabrics. Irish favourite motifs are rectangles and triangles; the symbol attempts to symbolize this style in the letterform. Original colours: cobalt blue for j, broken cobalt blue for i. Two designs for a sign for the Prache bookbindery. The speciality of this house is spiral and ring binding. The first draft is a name made up of wire, interlocking letters in a circle shape. The second draft follows the same principle but is only based on the P. The rectangle (book, sheet of paper) was included. Monogram for the French architect Georges Johannet. Its architecture is strictly based on geometric elements, in very finely coordinated spatial proportions. Ipreig is the official abbreviation for the Institut professionel de recherches et d'études des industries graphiques. With a view to serving professional progress, it seems justified to give the symbol of this institute the character of an experiment that could be renewed from time to time. (Design not executed).
  • Design Archive Feature, Members Only Content

Logos and Lettering by Adrian Frutiger, André Gürtler and Bruno Pfäffli

Working alongside André Gürtler and Bruno Pfäffli, Adrian Frutiger designed many logo designs. Here is a selection of the designs which were featured in Der Druckspiegel, December 1961. I have also translated and rewritten the descriptions to provide more depth.
Radici, Graphic Design from Hypertextuality to Hyperknowledge (Radici, La Grafica dall’Ipertestualità all’Iperconoscenza), 2021.
  • Designer Interview

Katia Pecoraro: The dualism between system and freedom, design and life.

"Talking about myself as a designer is something that requires a powerful dialogue with my life experiences. In a radical way, I apply an exercise in which design forms become projections of life, extensions of meaning that constantly involve senses."

Members Content

Cinderella - Stuttgart, Bundesn Gartenschau, 1961
  • Design Archive Feature, Members Only Content

Cinderella. A selection of Publicity Stamps and Stickers

I have a real passion for collecting Cinderella stamps and other ephemera and love the artistic and historical value of these items. The scarcity of some Cinderella stamps, especially those associated with significant historical events or rare advertising campaigns, makes them highly sought after in the philatelic world.
Mark_Bloom_landscape copy
  • Designer Interview

Designers and Books Series – Mark Bloom

Mark Bloom has designs for globally recognised brands, produces some of the finest, most accessible modern typefaces and heads up Mash Creative and CoType Foundry. His type foundry has always been a port of call for our studio's brand projects and he continues to develop these, each with a fantastic print specimen.