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Paul Rand Edition | Page 2
aul Rand, an art director, teacher, writer, graphic designer and design consultant for multiple corporate companies. Steven Heller (2000) best describes the immense work and contributions Rand has made to the design industry during his years. ‘In the late 1930s he began to transform commercial art from craft to profession. By the early 1940s he influenced the look of advertising, book and magazine cover design. By the late 1940s he proffered a graphic design vocabulary based on pure form where once only style and technique prevailed. By the mid-1950s he altered the ways in which major corporations used graphic identity. And by the mid1960s he had created some of the world’s most enduring corporate logos, including IBM, UPS, ABC and Westinghouse.’ Rand was an influential graphic designer of his time, which had lasted over 6 decades, up until his death in 1996 at the age of 82. Paul Rand was born as Peretz Rosenbaum on August 15, 1914 to Jewish Immigrants in Brooklyn, NY, during World War I. Peter Behren (German architect and Designer) highlights the significance of Rand’s decisions in changing his name as well as identity, during the time when he gained a fairly large portfolio and attention. ‘It was at around this time that he decided to camouflage (and abbreviate) the overtly Jewish identity telegraphed by ‘Peretz Rosenbaum,’’ He shortened his forename from ‘Peretz’ to ‘Paul’ and borrowed ‘Rand’ from an uncle of his to create his new surname. ‘He figured that four letters here, four letters there, would create a nice symbol. So he became Paul Rand.’ (Interview with Morris Wyszygorod, friend and associate of Rand) (Heller, 1997) ‘Rand’s new persona, which served as the
brand name for his many accomplishments, was the first corporate identity he created, and it may also eventually prove to be the most enduring.’ Though his father warned him of the difficulties in making a living in art, he agreed to let him attend night classes at Pratt Institute (1929-1932), however Rand states in an Interview with Steven Heller (1988), that he “had literally learned
nothing at Pratt; or whatever little I learned, I learned by doing myself”.
Other than Pratt, Rand also attended and studies at two other institutes, Parsons School of Design (1932-1933), and the Art Students League (19331934), but “neither of these schools offered Rand much stimulation.” Rand considered himself, selftaught as a designer, as through his curiosity and research in bookshops, he was introduced to Bauhaus ideals. This was through discovering two leading European graphic design art magazines (at the time), ‘Commercial Art’ and ‘Gebrauchsgrafik’, which Rand credits for his distinctive simple and minimalistic style. Rand was also interested in the Avant-garde style as well as the artists who adopted Avant-garde, such as Paul Klee (painter), El Lissitzky (designer) and Le Corbusier (architect), ‘each of whom advocated a timeless spirit in design’ (Heller, 2000), an approach that Rand would have wanted to encompass.
/ R AND
“Don’t try to be original. Just try to be good.” Paul Rand didn’t set out to create or be
best, but to be able to produce good, humble design work. What he thought of as ‘good work’, others considered ‘exceptional design’ (Heller, 2000). He didn’t aim to reform design, he just wanted to create good design, as a result of his observations of the ‘poor aesthetic standards’ in the advertising and publishing industries and understood the demands. At 24 (October/November 1938), PM, a leading American graphic arts trade magazine declared that ‘Rand is unhampered by traditions’, ‘He has no stereotyped style because every task is something new and demands its own solution. Consequently, there is nothing labored or forced about his work.’ Rand’s ability to work against the grain and be somewhat rebellious was foreseeable in his childhood. At three he would draw the Palmolive models that he saw hanging as advertisements in his father’s store. ‘I used a tiny stool as my table and I drew without stopping,’ Rand recalled; adding, ‘But you realize, in the Orthodox religion you don’t draw the human figure. It’s against the rules.’ Rand, along with his twin brother, would also skip religious school to hang out outside the neighbourhood (Heller, 2000). His grounded, yet unconsciously rebellious approach to his design work is what seemed to have lead to his unique finesse and success in the design world.
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Bigman, A. (2015, May 08). 4 principles by Paul Rand that may surprise you - Designer Blog. Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://99designs.com.au/blog/creative-inspiration/4-principles-by-paul-rand-that-may-surprise-you/
Editors, Iconofgraphics. (n.d.). Paul Rand. Retrieved October 26, 2017, from http://www.iconofgraphics.com/paul-rand/
Heller, S. (1999). Paul Rand. Phaidon Press Limited.
Lewandowski, D. (n.d.). Paul Rand: A Brief Biography. Retrieved October 26, 2017, from http://www.paul-rand.com/foundation/biography/#.Wd4C4xOCxbU
Miller, E. (2017, September 12). How Did Paul Rand ‘Think Differently’ and Influence Modern Design? Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://www.thoughtco.com/profile-of-graphic-designer-paul-rand-1697482
T. (2007, December 28). Paul Rand. Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yOjts0tpco&ab_channel=tacouin
Paul Rand discusses Typography. (2015, December 22). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9Bi5dC2Zjg&ab_channel=gfktfk