Bradbury Thompson
yrubdarB nospmohT Designed by Nathan Hulsey Typefaces Futura Condensed Bold Baskerville Roman Sources The Art of Graphic Design, Bradbury Thompson Washburn University, Washburn.edu DesignHistory.com Megg’s History of Graphic Design. 5th edition, Phillip Meggs and Purvis Alston J. Bradbury Thompson Dies; Designer and Art Director, Lawrence Van Gelder, New York Times
1903
1911 — 1938
Ira Washington Rubel first uses the offset printing process. A process that paired with lithography became known as lithographic offset printing and became popular in the 1950s. This process uses the transfer of ink first to rubber and then to paper as opposed to first transfering ink to metal in order to print.
1937 Bradbury’s earliest work in the field of graphic design was for Washburn University. Below is his redesign of the school mascot, Ichabod, based on university benefactor Ichabod Washburn, from which Washburn University gets its name.
Bradbury Thompson, simply put was: as master. His work marked by “impeccable taste applied with great elegance—an elegance of simplicity, wit, and vast learning”. His career of accomplishment comes from decades of experience in print design. His origins lie in Topeka, Kansas, designing for his High School’s yearbook and then on to do the same while attending Washburn University. There he received his degree in economics.
“I believe an avid interest in type necessarily includes a zest for everyday life.”
1938
1940
1945
In 1938 Brad moved to New York City to begin his career as a Graphic Designer. There he began working for The Westvaco Corporation designing spreads for their periodical Inspirations for Printers, which debuted their printing papers. Later renamed Westvaco Inspirations, under Bradbury’s direction, as Alvin Eisenman, Director of studies in graphic design, Yale University School of Art quotes, “it became one of the leading avant-garde publications, its influence reaching from San Francisco to Milan”.
Stuart Davis is a notable early Modernist painter. Best known for his bright, colorful, jazz-influence works during the 1940s and 1950s, Davis played a influential role in Brad Thompson’s Modernist design style.
December 7, 1941, the Japanese Navy launches a suprise attack on The Pearl Harbor base in Oahu, Hawaii. The Japanese attack on pearl habor launched the US into the world wide conflict, spurring a nationwide upset and call to arms against Japan.
1945
1946
1945
Thomas Hart Benton is known as one of the first artist to strongly support regionalism in the US. His works mix flowing surrealistesque forms combined with color and shading reminescent of Spanish painter El Greco. Below is a spread from inspirations where Bradbury has used three of Benton’s works as visual elements.
After being deported from France back to his homeland, Swiss designer Herbert Matter comes to the US and begins working for the Office of War Information.
America’s entrance into WWII marked a new era for graphic designers. Many designers, including Bradbury, were commissioned by the Office of War Information to produce propoganda and promotional material such as recruitment posters and war bond flyers, and stamps.
1949
In 1945 Thompson also became the Art Director of Mademoiselle Magazine. As director he managed the design of both the cover as well as the layout and design of the entire magazine.
1950s
1950
During Bradbury’s tenure as Art Director for Mademoiselle Magazine, the movement for women’s rights was on the rise in the tumultuous post-war America.
Alexey Brodovich is known for being one of the most iconic magazine Art Directors of all time. His work for Harper’s Bazaar magazine set precesdences for the use of photography in design as well as “modern” design priniciples that influenced a generation of designers including Bradbury himself. One can see the correllation between their individual works. A sence of immediacy, and visual freshness sets an elegant tone for these womens’ magazines.
1945 As the conflict overseas escalated so, too, did the designer’s approach to conveying graphic messages. Here Brad shows us the drastic difference in connotation two simple words can make when paired with certain images. “Good Earth” having once carried the voice of the farmer, now carries the weight of the soldier.
1925 — 1930s 1950 Herbert Bayer develops a visual style using only all-lowercase sans-serif typefaces in his work. Bayer expiremented with the creation of a universal typeface.
Alphabet 26 or the monalphabet was first conceived as Thompson watched his son struggling to differentiate capital and lowercase letters. “Thompson noticed that his son would confuse the letters “b” and “d,” as well as conntecting uppercase and lowercase letters as the same letter.
This is an example of Alphabet 26 in use. You can see how the use of one symbol per letter increases the clarity and continuity of the words.
1950s
1950s — 1980s
Rock and roll emerges a new popular form of music combining elements of blues and jazz, appealing to a huge audience of young people across the nation.
One of Bradbury’s largest influences was his children. Many of his designs for Westvaco were inspired by the everyday intereactions between him and his kids, Mark, D, Leslie, and Elizabeth. This print below was conceievd when Brad tripped over his son’s toy horse. “Here the toy horse on wheels combined with an internal combustion engine made graphic the idea of horesepower on wheels”
“
“A home enviornment with happy young children was a favorable one in which to record fresh and enjoyable typographic ideas.”
1950s
1950
1939 — 1980
Postmodernism marks the evolution of artists form modernism as they begin to use art as a form of analysis on culture and society. Postmodernists both push the boundaries of common practices while also reviving historical and classical techniques.
Joseph Albers, famous graphic designer and teacher from the Bauhaus becomes the head of the design department at Yale, working to expand the design department then at the time called “graphic arts”. Albers will work with Bradbury until his retirement in 1958.
Thompson was obsessed with the design of stamps. From the beginning of his career and work with the OWI, Bradbury designed stamped for the United State Postal Service. These stamps contain designs inspired from a veriety of art styles. Modernist, postmodernist, and pop art were just three of the styles that Bradbury reflects, also much of his work foreshadowed these movements.
pe y t in t for t s e ter a zes n i id udes ife.” v a l cl n n y a i a e d y liev ssaril every e b “I nece
1951
1953
Joseph Albers invites Alvin Lustig to join the design department at Yale. Alvin was a famous book designer and typeface designer who would also work with Bradbury at Yale.
During his time working for Westvaco, Thompson had the ability to freely experiement in his work. One of his most notable studies was that of type as visual elements in design.
1940s — 1960s Thompson designs for various magazines. Using the school of thought of his contemporaries that design should be a process considered in every element of a piece. Brad’s work for magazines like Art News and Smithsonian extended beyond the cover design and into the format of the entire magazine.
1960
1969 — 1979
Pop Art movement begins as artists attempt to move away from the Modern Art movement which has been taken over by American advertising
One of Bradbury’s most well-known works is the Washburn Bible. Along with several other graphic designers, Bradbury worked tirelessly on the new edition for ten years. The new Bible took a new approach, instead of justified type, Bradbury set each line in such a flush left format in order to increase the ease of readability of the text.