Paul Rand

Title: Eye-Bee-M (IBM) Golden Circle Award Announcement
Date: 1981
Artist: Paul Rand
Design Movement: International Style

"Rand's most widely known contributions to design are his corporate indentities, many of which are still in use. IBM owes Rand their graphical heritage. Rand's defining corporate identity was his IBM logo in 1956, which as Mark Favermann notes 'was not just an identity but a basic design philosophy that permeated coporate consciousness and public awareness.'"

Rand was influenced by modernist philosophy. He enjoyed the works of Paul Cezanne, Jan Tschichold as well as many other artists. He "constantly attempted to draw the connections between their creative output and significant applications in graphic design."

Paul Rand was quoted saying "From Impressionism to Pop Art, the commonplace and even the comic strip have become ingredients for the artist's caldron. What Cezanne did with apples, Picasso with guitars, Leger with machines, Shwitters with rubbish, and Duchamp with urinals makes it clear that revelation does not depend upon grandiose concepts. The problem of the artist is to defamiliarize the ordinary."

I find this particular piece of Rand's extensive work compelling because it is simple and to the point. He has taken a widely known brand, IBM, and made something beautiful out of their logo. The simplicity is what makes it so extraordinary.