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Category: Designer Profiles

Profiles of graphic designers. Biographies, key works, and design histories drawn from the artefacts in the Design Reviewed archive.

Profiles of graphic designers drawn from the physical archive, their biographies, key works, influences, and place in design history. Profiles spanning designers from Europe, America, Japan, and beyond.

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Walter Frank Bomar - Resorts - Woman Playing Tennis, 1939
  • Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Walter Frank Bomar, scanned from The Inland Printer, Vol 104, No. 03, 1939

A 1939 article on American designer, Walter Frank Bomar, published in The Inland Printer, Vol 104, No. 03, 1939.

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Japan Letter Writing Day, Stamp Sheet, 1999. Illustrated by Dick Bruna
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Ephemera, Illustration, Members Only Content

Stamps, Dick Bruna and the Making of Miffy

Beyond his books, Dick Bruna's vivid colour and simplified forms found their way onto posters, packaging, murals and stamps, many of which feature in my growing collection.

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Dieffenbach Punch Brandy and Liqueur Advertisement, Valentin Zietara
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Valentin Zietara, by H K Frenzel translated by E. T. Scheffauer

An article on Valentin Zietara , originally in German, published in Gebrauchsgraphik, 10, 1930, written by H K Frenzel translated by E. T. Scheffauer

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Niederlausitzer Kohlenwerke Advertisement, Steglitz Workshop, c.1903
  • Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Studios & Collectives

The Steglitz Workshop by Dr. J. Loubier

A 1903-1904 article on Die Steglitzer Werkstatt, originally in German, published in Deutsche Kunst und Dekoration, Vol. XIII, October 1903–March 1904.

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Art Direction, Magazine of Visual Communication, 353, July 1978. Cover design by April Greiman and Raul Vega
  • Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Movements

April Greiman and her Hybrid Imagery

April Greiman is known for her experimental approach to graphic design,  her role in the development of Californian New Wave and being one of the first designers to fully embrace the computer in her work.

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Mayersäge, Carpenter at Work Advertisement, Ludwig Hohlwein
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Ludwig Hohlwein by Ernst Gundermann. Translated from Graphische Nachrichten, Vol 13, 11, November 1934

A 1936 article on Ludwig Hohlwein, originally in German, published in Graphische Nachrichten, Vol 13, 11, November 1934
Architecture Today, The Arts Council, 1961. Designed by Dennis Bailey
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles

Dennis Bailey (Modernist Graphic Design in Britain 1945–1980)

A profile of British designer Dennis Bailey, featured in Modernist Graphic Design in Britain 1945–1980 by Ian McLaren and Tony Pritchard, exploring his early influences and role in shaping post-war modernist graphic design in Britain.

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Woman’s Home Companion, Special Holiday Issue, January 1938. Cover design by Joseph Binder
  • Advertising Design, Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

The Art Deco Cover Designs of Joseph Binder

Joseph Binder translated machine-age aesthetics into refined Art Deco compositions. These magazine covers have become prime examples of American commercial modernism.

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IBM, The IBM 3033 Processor Complex, Model Group N, c. 1978. Designed by Robert (Bob) Salpeter
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Bob Salpeter – A Man of Ideas, Humour and Extensive Work

Bob Salpeter was trained by Paul Rand at IBM and educated in New York, at the School of Visual Arts and the School of Industrial Art. Salpeter went on to build an extensive and impressive career working with clients such as the American Museum of Natural History, the World Golf Hall of Fame, the American Cancer Society, Scott Printing and IBM.

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The Typographic Work of Noel Martin
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories, Typography & Type Design

The Typographic Work of Noel Martin

A chance eBay find led me to a rare and extensive collection of work by midcentury American designer Noel Martin, including posters, museum ephemera, and print for major institutions like the Cincinnati Art Museum and Champion Papers.

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Scanned Posters designed by Michele Spera
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Poster Design

Scanned Posters Designed by Michele Spera

Scanned posters by the great Michele Spera. Many use a strong use of geometric form, often paired with sans-serif typefaces like Helvetica. Their simplification of form and use of colour create timeliness, recognisable posters that would have stood out alongside the posters of the 1970s which tended to have a heavy use of photography.

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Advertising by Karl Schulpig from 1924. Scanned from Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, March 1925
  • Advertising Design, Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Karl Schulpig by Dr. Walter F. Schubert, Berlin. Translated from Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, March 1925

A 1925 article on Karl Schulpig, originally in German and published in Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, March 1925.

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IBM magazine advertisements designed by Matthew Leibowitz. Scanned from Graphic Design 07, 1962
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Matthew Leibowitz. American Graphic Designer | 1918 – 1974

Matthew Leibowitz was born in Philadelphia in 1918 and was a pioneering American graphic designer known for his innovative use of typography, illustrations, and photography. Over his career, he worked with clients like IBM, AT&T, and Paramount Pictures, received over 150 international awards, and his designs are featured in the collections of major museums, including MoMA in New York and Paris.

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Graphic Design 08, 1962. Cover design by Tadashi Ohashi
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Tadashi Ohashi. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1916 – 1988

Tadashi Ohashi was at the forefront of Japan's postwar design movement, with his illustrations widely celebrated. In 1952, he became the chief designer for Meiji Seika Confectionery, producing some of his most renowned work.

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La Biennale di Venezia XII, Festival Internazionale Di Musica Contemporanea, 1949. Designed by Max Huber
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Max Huber. Swiss Graphic Designer | 1919 – 1992

Max Huber was born in 1919 in Switzerland. He studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Arts and Crafts) in Zurich where he excelled in graphic design and photography.  Huber worked across advertising, packaging, design and industrial design. He had a distinctive style that skillfully blended bright hues with photomontage.

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Design (Japan), 027, 1961. Cover design by Ryuichi Yamashiro
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Ryuichi Yamashiro. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1920 – 1977

Ryuichi Yamashiro (山城隆)  was a Japanese graphic designer and artist, born in Osaka in 1920. He belonged to the same generation of pioneering Japanese designers as Kohei Sugiura, Kiyoshi Awazu, Yoshio Hayakawa, Yūsaku Kamekura, Kazumasa Nagai, and Ikko Tanaka.  

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FILM Quarterly, 05, 1970. Cover design by Kiyoshi Awazu
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Kiyoshi Awazu. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1929 – 2009

Kiyoshi Awazu (粟津) was a renowned Japanese graphic designer, known for his contributions across various creative fields including poster design, architecture, set design, filmmaking, and illustration. His unique style was commissioned by theatre groups, design and architecture magazines and various organisations for the covers of book covers and posters.

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Design (Japan), 61, 1964. Cover design by Kohei Sugiura
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Kohei Sugiura. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1932

Kohei Sugiura’s work spans an impressive range of mediums, including record jackets, publication covers, posters, exhibition catalogues, and stamps. He perfectly merged functionality and data visualisation with aesthetics. Drawing on his background in architecture, Sugiura applied a systematic, programmatic methodology to graphic design, similar to the approach of Swiss designer Karl Gerstner. 

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Playing Cards, Takenobu Igarashi, Museum of Modern Art, 1993
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Takenobu Igarashi. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1944

Takenobu Igarashi was born in 1944 in Tokyo and is best known for his typographic work as both a sculptor and designer. His work in over 30 permanent museum collections and continues to inspire designers today.

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Idea-014-1955.-Cover-design-by-Yoshio-Hayakawa--768x768
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Yoshio Hayakawa. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1917 – 2009

Yoshio Hayakawa is one of Japan’s most influential post-war poster designers. His work represents a fusion of traditional Japanese art and European modernism often using soft, poetic brushstrokes and refined colour palettes and capturing the elegance of Japanese aesthetics while integrating the clean lines and bold visual language of Western design.

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Idea 81, 1967. Cover design by Yusaku Kamekura
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Yūsaku Kamekura. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1915 – 1997

Yūsaku Kamekura had a long list of clients and as well as cover designs, he worked across logo and brand design, packaging, book design, and other printed matter, but he is particularly known for his poster design. His clients included Nikon, Tokyo 1964 Olympics, Meiji and TDK.

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Idea 46, 1961. Cover design by Hiroshi Ohchi.
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Hiroshi Ohchi. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1908 – 1974

Hiroshi Ohchi was a prominent Japanese designer, known for his playful and imaginative illustrated poster and packaging designs. He often combined bright colours with simple geometric forms and illustrated people and humanistic elements.

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Kazumasa Nagai. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1929
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Kazumasa Nagai. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1929

Kazumasa Nagai  (永井 一正) was born in 1929 in Osaka and is one of Japan's most acclaimed graphic designers. He designed iconic corporate logos for major companies such as Mitsubishi UFJ, Japan Railways, Nissin, and TEPCO and designed 100s of posters.

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Ikko Tanaka Posters 1980-2002, DNP Graphic Design Archive Exhibition IV, 2012 C
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Ikko Tanaka. Japanese Graphic Designer | 1930 – 2002 

Ikko Tanaka (田中一光, 1930–2002) was a celebrated Japanese graphic designer. His client list included Mazda, Hanae Mori and Issey Miyake, Expo '85 in Tsukuba, World City Expo Tokyo '96, and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

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9 jaar Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, 1945-54 designed by Willem Sandberg
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Willem Sandberg – Life and Legacy

This 1,500 word essay is about the life and work of Willem Sandberg and is illustrated with part of my collection of over 100 pieces of Sandberg’s work, including books, Stedelijk Museum catalogues, and various individual printed items.

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Holland Festival 72 Stamp Designed by Dick Elffers
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Dick Elffers and his 1972 Holland Festival and Floriade stamp designs

Dick Elffers, had been the chosen designer for the printed matter of the Holland Festival for much of the festival's years, he used a painterly style for his work with the festival between 1954 and 1965 and later a more abstract style between 1969 and 1972. As well as publicity design, Elffers was commissioned to design the summer stamps to promote the Holland Festival in 1972.

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Social Welfare Funds, Netherlands Maxi Card (Yellow), 1970. Designed by Ootje Oxenaar
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

The Innovative Netherlands Stamps designed by Ootje Oxenaar in 1970

Ootje Oxenaar designed the summer stamps for the Netherlands using an assignment from De Nederlandsche Bank based on banknotes. The assignment resulted in the collaboration of Oxenaar, the printer, the laboratory and the banking specialist, in which they experimented with the design of securities on printed matter.

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De 8 en Opbouw, 8e jaargang No 13, 3 Juli 1937 designed by Paul Schuitema
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Magazines & Publishing, Members Only Content, Regional Histories

Typophoto. Paul Schuitema and his cover designs for De 8 en Opbouw

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Paul Schuitema emerged as one of the Dutch pioneers of new typography. This article features a selection of the cover designs and a few inner spreads from my collected issues of De 8 en Opbouw.
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Walter Frank Bomar - Resorts - Woman Playing Tennis, 1939
  • Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Walter Frank Bomar, scanned from The Inland Printer, Vol 104, No. 03, 1939

A 1939 article on American designer, Walter Frank Bomar, published in The Inland Printer, Vol 104, No. 03, 1939.

Members Content

Japan Letter Writing Day, Stamp Sheet, 1999. Illustrated by Dick Bruna
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Ephemera, Illustration, Members Only Content

Stamps, Dick Bruna and the Making of Miffy

Beyond his books, Dick Bruna's vivid colour and simplified forms found their way onto posters, packaging, murals and stamps, many of which feature in my growing collection.

Members Content

Dieffenbach Punch Brandy and Liqueur Advertisement, Valentin Zietara
  • Design Archive Feature, Designer Profiles, Members Only Content

Valentin Zietara, by H K Frenzel translated by E. T. Scheffauer

An article on Valentin Zietara , originally in German, published in Gebrauchsgraphik, 10, 1930, written by H K Frenzel translated by E. T. Scheffauer