In fact this is something I’ve always loved. It was designed by the late Philip Thompson (1928 -2007) as a universal label to be applied to whatever. Here’s an example of how it could be used…
See, good aye?
There are so many horrors in the design world today that I’d
like to have a wallet full of these delightfully witty little stickers.
For those who are not familiar with Philip Thompson’s work, let me fill you in.
He was one of those self-contained graphic designers like David Gentleman. No
need for assistants, writers, illustrators, typographers or photographers
because he could do the lot with great aplomb. And Thompson did it brilliantly.
Above just two of hundreds of book covers that Philip Thompson designed. As you can see he was fond of stickers.
Above illustrations for the RSA Journal from 2000
Childproof packaging
He was also a one-time political cartoonist, teacher and hoarder of printed ephemera. In the 1970s, Derek Birdsall gave Thompson a stream of work, from book covers to magazine illustration commissions. In 1980, along with one-time colleague Peter Davenport, he collaborated on this long out of print but wonderful A to Z of visual clichés and more…
Long out of print, this is a great book if you can get your hands on a copy. The co-author, Peter Davenport has been working on a new edition. Watch this space.The above it is dotted with many more examples of Philip Thompson's work.
Over his lifetime he produced masses of work, but sadly little can be found on
the internet. He worked right up to his death; a modest, unpushy character
that, unlike so many designers who spout on about how great they are (they are
usually not), just quietly got on with it. But he was very appreciated by those
who knew just how talented he was. The RSA made him a Royal Designer for
Industry in 2000. If you have any examples of Philip’s work, do email them to
me and I will add them to this little tribute post.