Three Mid-Century Modern Graphic Designers You Need to Know About

Here are 3 incredible midcentury modern designers that made a significant impact to design in the mid-20th century. They influence me in my own work at BillingtonPix with their idealism about great design, with the honesty of clear communication that was a clear break away from earlier design.

1. Paul Rand

Paul Rand is best known for his corporate logos, such as for IBM and NeXT, but his earlier work comprised of magazine and book covers. His genius was in reducing the ethos of a company down to a single logo that clearly communicated its message, by stripping away all the non-essentials to deliver an un-sentimental design that you could trust. You can read my blog about his work.

2. Saul Bass

Saul Bass dedicated his life to creating beautiful movie posters and movie opening sequences, such as for Psycho, North by Northwest, Goodfellas and Casino. His style is quintessentially mid-century and you can still see it being used today. Like Paul Rand, Bass was able to reduce the meaning of his subject down to a few moments to introduce the film to the audience, or with a single image on a poster. His art was in his ability to find beauty in the ordinary. You can read my blog about his work.

3. Alvin Lustig

Alvin Lustig created beautiful modernist book covers and magazine covers. He died at the early age of 40 in 1955, but not before leaving a significant mark in the field of modernist graphic design. His genius was in his subjective approach to Modernism, apply Bauhausian principles of great design that was not afraid to pull from other design movements. His use of complex symbolism also ensured a personal reaction on behalf of the reader, which is the true work of a master in his craft. You can read about him in my blog post.

Let me know what you think about these 3 designers of mid-century modern graphic design. If you love vintage style design you will surely appreciate their genius. But which would be your favorite? Let me know!