How Lubalin Let Type Talk

How Lubalin Let Type Talk

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Lubalin working in his studio. He lived from March 17, 1918 – May 24, 1981

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Over

the course of his career, Herb Lubalin proved to the design community that graphic design doesn’t constantly need illustrations or photography in order to be dynamic and interesting; typography can stand alone yet still effectively communicate the same ideas. Lubalin used fonts that made sense for the design, sometimes even creating his own in the process. He incorporated little illustrations into the hand lettering of the logo that added interest without detracting from the meaning and emotion of the design. Legibility wasn’t as much of a concern to Lubalin because as long as the message got across, he didn’t need the clarity of type. Design was his life, and it showed in the sheer number of projects he would put out. A coworker in Lubalin’s office described him as such: “He loved design, ate slept, and drank it. He had the most fun sitting at his desk, drawing with his marker.”

Left: A collection of Lubalin’s designs over the years

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Two sketches of Lubalin’s work; Left, a travel ad, right a design for Lubalin’s college, Cooper Union

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working at Sudler and Hennessey, Lubalin proved to be a prolific designer, taking on job after job. He would create a design using artist tissue, similar to tracing paper, and layer the pieces, adjusting as needed, until he was satisfied with the sketch. He would then pass off the design to interns who would complete the design and send it off to production. Lubalin would then move onto the next project, and repeat the process again and again, day in and day out.

“The most intriguing thing about advertising is writing the headline. I think more about creating an idea, writing the headline; then designing the ad.”

Lubalin became Art Director of the company and shortly after, the name was changed to Sudler, Hennessey, and Lubalin.

Lubalin’s entire life was focused around design.

Even though he had a wife and three children, he was dedicated to the work. He didn’t speak much, but he collaberated often with other designers, fleshing out ideas and handing them off to artists in the company to be produced. He could create designs in a few hours. His incredible work ethic is best expemplified in the description of the mounds of tissue that he produced. Lubalin’s sketches were by no means perfect, but the ideas “just poured out of him”. His career was prolific and though advertisments were the main jobs at Sudler and Hennessey, his love for typography and headlines was evident.

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Ever

Spasm Advertisment

the designer of fantastical creations, Lubalin could create his own designs out of almost anything. One of his more famous process stories involves a slinky. While working at Suddler & Hennessey, the firm got an advertising job for a medicine that helped stop stomach spasms, amongst other things. Lubalin thought about how, when a slinky moves, it follows the same spasming movement. He then brought in a slinky and ended up using it to create the “s� in the word spasm.

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Eros, Fact, and Avant Garde; three of the magazines he created

Eros

was the first of three publications produced by Herb Lubalin and Ralph Ginzburg. It was a magazine that was filled with explicit content about sexuality and affection, including a photographic poem of an interracial couple. Due to the horribly stiff political climate at the time and the fact that there were some very explicit pieces, Eros only made it to four published pieces before Ginzburg was accused of breaking laws about obscenity and the publication had to fold.

Fact

was the second of the three publications by Lubalin and Ginzburg. Instead of relationships, they focused on politics. Though there was no nudity, they were sued a second time because they called a presidential candidate psychologically unfit. It also folded because of legal action taken against the magazine.

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Avant Garde was the third publication. It was described as a combination of the two previous magazines, but more careful. Avant Garde means new and unexpected ideas moving forward in the future and that is what the two men did. Originally the magazine had a logo, but Lubalin decided to create lettering for the title, which led to its own font, named after the publication.

Lubalin

created the font Avant Garde during the period that he was producing a magazine with the same name.

Avant Garde literally means to move forward or advance to something new. The font is a combination of Gothic typography and Roman style typography. The font started out as the design for the magazine cover, but as Lubalin designed more and more for the publication, he found he was creating a font that mimicked his cover design, which later became Avant Garde.

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Herb Lubalin took typography to the next level. He used expressive design that showcased how type alone can be enough in design. His prolific career spanned several companies and hundreds of designs, and Lubalin’s imprint on the world will forever remain on the graphic design community.

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Lubalin a few years before his untimely death

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Bird, David. “HERB LUBALIN, GRAPHIC DESIGNER FOR PUBLICATIONS AND ADVERTISING.” The New York Times.

May 26, 1981. Accessed April 24, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/26/obituaries/herb-lubalin-graphic-designer-for-publications-and-advertising.html.

Flask, Dominic. Herb Lubalin : Design Is History. Accessed April 2018. http://www.designishistory.com/1960/herb-lubalin/.

“Lubalin 100.” Lubalin 100. Accessed April 24, 2018. http://lubalin100.com/.

Snyder, Gertrude, and Alan Peckolick. Herb Lubalin: Art Director, Graphic Designer and Typographer. New York: American Showcase, 1985.

Designed and written by Olivia Houston Composed in Helvetica, typeface designed by Max Miedinger Copyright © 2018 Olivia Houston, Portland, Maine, Maine College of Art

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