Great Moments in EGD
1900 Paris Metro Entrances
1912 Neon Signs
1950s Las Vegas Strip and Downtown
1957 Helvetica
1966 Sea Ranch Supergraphics
1967 Expo 67 Montreal
1973 Hollywood Sign Recognized as a Monument
1973 Formation of SEGD
1979 Architectural Signing and Graphics
1983 Gerber Signmaker and Die-Cut Vinyl Letters
By Wayne Hunt, Guest Editor
A small group of pioneering designers first met and formed SEGD 40 years ago, and they can be credited with giving a name to the discipline we now call Environmental Graphic Design. But EGD has been evolving for many more than 40 years, and there have been many great EGD moments both before and since SEGD was formed. Innovative places, people, technologies, projects, books, breakthroughs, and events—many more than 40—can be credited with helping to shape the discipline. Here’s my list of the big things that changed the status quo, influenced us, and helped build, define, and refine a design discipline. I chose 40 moments that had a major impact on me, my peers, and the emerging design field that we now call environmental graphics. For the several projects listed I could have selected many others, similarly influential and important. Sorry I couldn’t include all the great suggestions from my fellow SEGD Fellows and other veteran SEGD members who provided valuable input.
1992 Gurnee Mills
1990s LED Signage
18 — eg magazine
1993 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
2001 Apple Store