A Timeline of Margo Chase by Kieran Friel

Logo for Paisley Park Record Label

Logo for Cher’s Love Hurts KIND Logo

Logo for TV Show Buffy the Vampire Slayer

2

Queen of Design 1958 – 2017 Margo Chase was a

graphic designer who was born on February 20th, 1958.

She went to undergrad at California Polytechnic State University where she studied biology hoping to become a veterinarian. During her time at college, she took graphic design classes and fell in love with the discipline and ended up minoring in design. She was hoping to be hired by a firm after college, but ended up freelancing. Some of her first notable jobs were logos and album covers for large musicians at the time. The logos to the left are some of her most famous designs.

Logo for Madonna’s Like a Prayer

3

Margo’s Music Moment Chase’s design work

can be seen throughout the 1990s music scene. Two of the most prominent stars she worked with were Cher and Prince.

LoveSexy by Prince Released in 1988

1988 – 1991

4

Chase helped Cher create the cover for her 1991 album Love Hurts as well as the limited edition merchandise. She used her signature calligraphy-inspired style to create a typeface for every project, including Love Hurts.

She never created an entire typeface, but designed the letters she needed. She also designed Prince’s LoveSexy album as well as the logo for his record label, Paisley Park. Both projects were created for the same client, but use Chase’s signature style in two distinct ways, one super colorful and fun, the other black and white with a more serious feel.

Love Hurts by Cher Released in 1991

Paisley Park Founded in 1985

LoveSexy Logo Released in 1988

5

Designing for a Vampire In the late 1990s,

Chase transitioned from working in the music industry to working with vampires.

Her first notable vampire project was Bram Stoker’s Dracula. This project truly showcased Chase’s unique hand-drawn style. Her inspiration for the calligraphy aspects of her work was her mother. Chase grew up with a mother who taught her all about calligraphy and was well versed in it. She passed her love of hand craft down to Chase who then embraced the idea of calligraphy in her design work.

After the success of Dracula, Chase was asked to do the logo for the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Following her work on Buffy, she was deemed “The Queen of Goth” in the design world. Chase wanted to break free of this title, so she moved onto branding and packaging.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula Logo Released in 1992

1992 – 1997

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Logo Released in 1997

6

Bram Stoker’s Dracula Poster Released in 1992

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Released in 1997

7

On the Shelf

Kama Sutra Oil of Love Released in 2000

2000 – 2017 After working with

musicians and vampires, Chase decided it was time to move on. While working as a designer in the music industry, she had very little to do with the albums selling as it was more about how famous the artist was.

In the 2000s, Chase helped create brand identities and packaging for multiple companies. The first brand that she worked with was Califia Farms. She helped design the logo and packaging for their almond milk, cold brew, and all of their other products.

She also helped the brand Kama Sutra with their Oil of Love and KIND with their Pressed Fruit Bars. All three of these brands are different in so many ways, yet Chase was able to design for all of them, proving that she was not only the “Queen of Goth” but could work in the commercial world.

8

KIND Founded in 2004

KIND Founded in 2004

Califia Farms Founded in 2010

9

In Memoriam

Chase’s work

has earned her multiple awards in the field of graphic design. Two of these awards are one of the top ten “Most Influential Design Firms of the Era” with the firm she founded, Chase Design Group.

She was also selected to be one of forty for I.D. Magazine’s “I.D. Forty.” Her work was featured in numerous books and magazines, like Graphis, New Design: Los Angeles, and Communication Arts. She was also featured in exhibitions like “Women Designers in the USA, 1900 –2000: Diversity and Difference” which was displayed in New York City. Chase also taught the highest level of typography class at both California Institute of the Arts and Art Center College of Design.

On July 22nd, 2017, Margo Chase was involved in a fatal plane crash. She is survived by her husband, Patrick Dugan, and her design firm, Chase Design Group.

10

Chase Design Group Founded in 1986

Chase Design Group Studio Founded in 1986

“If we’re not going to do the work we feel good about, why are we in it?” –Margo Chase1 11

1 https://www.howdesign. com/design-business/design-news/ margo-chase-growing-iconic-business/

Sources Adams, Sean and Kristin Ellison, Remembering Margo Chase, designobserver.com www.designobserver.com/feature/margo-chase/39631 Chase Design Group, Chase Design Group, Chasedesigngroup.com https://www.chasedesigngroup.com https://www.chasedesigngroup.com/ culture/our-founder/ https://www.chasedesigngroup.com/ culture/our-studios/ Gomez-Palacio, Bryony, Women of design : influence and inspiration from the original trailblazers to the new groundbreakers, Cincinnati: HOW Books, 2008.

History Graphic Design, Margo Chase, historygraphicdesign.com http://www.historygraphicdesign. com/the-age-of-information/the-digital-revolution-and-beyond/1200-margo-chase Mooth, Bryn, Margo Chase on Growing Her Iconic Business, howdesign. com https://www.howdesign.com/ design-business/design-news/margo-chase-growing-iconic-business/ The Sherwood Group, Success Ideas from Master Designer, Margo Chase, http://thesherwoodgroup.com http://thesherwoodgroup.com/ business-education/margo-chase/#.

XLZKm5NKjOR Steiner, Leif and Emily Potts, Margo Chase: The Future of Packaging, moxiesozo.com https://moxiesozo.com/2017/04/04/ margo-chase-future-packaging/

Written and Designed by Kieran Friel Composed in Avenir and Antiquarian Printed on Hammermill 80lb Copyright Š Kieran Friel Maine College of Art Portland, Maine 04101

12