Paul Rand codified his approach in the 1947 book Thoughts On Design, available again after years out of print. Pentagram’s Michael Bierut, who wrote the forward for the reissued book, outlines Rand’s enduring principles and what today’s brands can learn from them.
“For an advertisement to hold its own in the competitive race, the designer must steer clear of visual clichés by some unexpected interpretation of the commonplace.” That’s legendary designer and art director Paul Rand writing in his remarkably prescient 1947 book Thoughts on Design about the value of surprise in marketing. A master of advertising, editorial design and brand identity—his logos for ABC, IBM, UPS, and Westinghouse are still in use some five decades after their creation—Rand inspired and influenced everyone from George Lois to Steve Jobs and Jonny Ive. And after a long period out of print, his seminal book, which captured his design philosophy and approach, is available again.
Pentagram Design partner Michael Bierut, who wrote the preface for Chronicle Books’ new edition of Thoughts on Design, says “Paul was this more or less self-trained, tough-talking kid out of Brooklyn who had a real talent for figuring out how to reconcile the worlds of things he cared about—art and self-expression—with the needs of clients to sell things.”
Bierut explains why Rand’s mastery of symbol, simplicity and form-making contain timeless lessons for today’s brand builders.
5 Timeless Marketing Lessons for Today’s Brand from Visionary Designer Paul Rand
