Tuesday Flickr Set: Science and Tech Ads from Bustbright.
We tweeted about Katie Varrati's and Derrick Schultz' (collectively known as Bustbright) Science and Tech Ads Flickr set a few weeks ago, but that tiny mention hardly did the collection justice. After all, this assembly of 300-plus images from the 50s and 60s is just so very current. As young English designers are all aflutter about applying the tight grid, flat color, and sans- and block serifs (as are we), the Americans are totally gay for the mid-century Swiss (guilty as charged). But much like the skinny Motown soul club suits that inspired Brit rock and even punk fashion culture, many of the finest communications design reference points begin and end on the factory floors of the good ole' U S of A. Paul Rand for Westinghouse; Willi K. Baum for aerospace concern, Martin; illustrator Steve Chass, as directed by ad agency Carpenter, Matthews & Stewart for ITT. Take your time and enjoy every frame. And sure, we realize it is essential to note that these guys didn't write the entire book, either. They just left a lending library for designers — of every nation — to pick, lift, crib, and repurpose for years to come.
Posted by Eric Hillerns in History | 24 March 2009 | Permalink | Comment on this post
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