Graphic Journey Blog

Michael Foreman: Magical imagination

This is Michael Foreman...

And here is some of his work...

Above published in 1961 The General was Michael Foreman's first illustrated book. Below just a sampling of his prolific output since those early days. To date he has 300 books to his name.

He is one of Britain's most successful, lauded and loved children's book illustrators. Since the publication of his first book in 1961 he  has had over 300 titles, for both adults and children, published. I recently made an RDInsights recording with him. Born in 1938 in rural Suffolk during the second world war his creative journey is fascinating and surprising. To hear it click here. Enjoy.

Sam Serif # 36

Shock of the New: Robert Hughes

Hughes in full flight

BBC2 have been rerunning the wonderful Robert Hughes series, Shock of the New from 1980. Do catch the brilliant one on architecture, Trouble in Utopia. Hughes single-handedly dismantles the over hyped and pretentiousness that surrounded the high priests of modernist architecture with their total disregard for people.

And he shows the dreadful legacy of their over inflated egos. It is a tour de force in critical rhetoric and a joy to hear if you sync with his views. See it here. while it is still on iPlayer.

D&AD/50th Anniversary

I was somewhat taken aback and delighted last night when I was presented with this...

in recognition for this...

50 years is a long graphic journey, and one that I have immensely enjoyed and hope to continue to do so.

Thank you D&AD.

Neil Fujita: Dancing graphics

This is Neil Fujita (1921 –2010)...

He was a Hawaiian born American of Japanese immigrant parents. And was one of the most noted graphic designers working out of New York in the early 1950’s. He was most celebrated for his stint as art director at Columbia records where he produced and commissioned a raft of highly original designs that helped change the face of album cover presentation. Jazz was his particular forte and this cover for The Dave Brubeck Quartet: Time Out album caused quite a stir when it first appeared in 1959…

Along with many others...

For me it is his paintings rather than his graphics that I find so striking and current. Here are a few...

Above for a Charie Mingus album cover 1959

His work also graced  many advertisments, magazine and book covers...

For Modern Packaging 1961

Fourtune magazine 1954

Fourtune magazine 1953
 

And in 1962 he wrote his own book (below) to help demistify the world of graphic design.

 

  

Welsh idyl

At the end of an oak lined road in deepest Wales you’ll come across this bespotted car...

It announces the arrival at my brother’s house. Musician, woodsman, sculptor and dreamer. He has created an eccentric, magical garden populated by many of his carvings...

I spent a long weekend with him and my younger brother to catch up on our respective lives. Much laughter and conversation was had by all. And as usual I zeroed in on a pile of dusty magazines lurking in the corner of a room. This was a good find because they were art periodicals from the 1960s and 70s.

This was particularly interesting…

From 1963 the Studio International magazine was art directed by David Pelham. He was also responsible for the cover design and later became the art director of Penguin Books in the 1970s.

Here are some other covers when the format was enlarged post Pelham’s period.

The above 3 from 1967. And very beautiful too

Above from 1968

And this one from 1970

Also these other  mags from the period...

Art and Artists from 1967

Above two from 1971.

Note on the above front cover. Even in 1970 David Gentleman was a major figure.