Before Class 04/12/10

Because of the wars over in Europe, many designers fled to safe harbor in New York. While in America, the two cultures and design styles combined. "European design was often theoretical and highly structured; American design was pragmatic, intuitive, and less formal." What emerged was "New York Style." It was influenced by the capitalistic American society, freedom of expression and ideas, and "direct presentation of information." One of the designers who was most influential to this movement was Paul Rand. By the age of twenty-three, he was already working as an editor and designer for magazines. He was a such a good designer because he understood symbols very well. He knew the power and emotion a simple symbol can evoke in people. He was also influenced by the abstract artists Klee and Kandinsky. In his design he combined the freedom of form that a Klee employed, as well as the obvious meaning symbols had. He used collages and montages in his work. He was also one of the first designers to work closely with a copywriter. With Bill Berbach, he could "create a synergistic visual-verbal integreation. Later in life, Rand focused his efforts on trademarks and corporate designs, as the American society evolved into a much more corporate and branding culture. The New York school was about pushing the limit. It was about trying new things, playing with colors, shapes, text, and ultimately creating a symbolically understood message.
Graphic designers of this movement also changed education. Alvin Lustig was the first to develop a graphic design program at Yale University. Finally, the New York school influenced film. Print and media graphic were combined to create unified logos, posters, and film titles. Typography combined with music and the exciting opening of the film was created.
I would be curious to know what city designers flock to now. Is New York still the "hot spot?"