Collated by Richard Baird, founder of LogoArchive, the world’s largest historical logo book, and of LogoHistories, home to 200+ in-depth logo histories.
Behind every great logo is a designer or studio with a point of view. This collection brings together interviews, profiles and essays on some of the most influential figures in the history of logo design and corporate identity.
From Yusaku Kamekura and Shigeo Fukuda in Japan to Pentagram in London, Total Design in Amsterdam and Landor in San Francisco, these articles, reprinted from design magazines of the 1960s to the 1990s, capture designers talking about their work, often while it was still new.
For the logos themselves, see our designer collections for Yusaku Kamekura, Paul Rand, Saul Bass and Chermayeff & Geismar, or explore the other Magazine collections on logo design around the world, trademark design and corporate identity.
Key Takeaways
Process matters as much as the mark
Interviews with designers such as Kamekura reveal how much research, testing and persuasion sat behind seemingly simple symbols.
Studios shaped the profession
Groups such as Pentagram, Total Design and Landor turned logo design into a systematic, multidisciplinary practice.
Personal style meets corporate needs
The best designers balanced a distinctive personal language with the practical demands of large organisations.
Go behind the logos. Explore 200+ in-depth and meticulously researched logo histories revealing the designers, design decisions and ideas behind the world’s most iconic logos and important brand identities.
Continue reading to discover all 22 articles in this collection →
An interview with Yusaku Kamekura, 1979
In this interview, conducted by designer and editor Katzumie Masaru, legendary designer Yusaku Kamekura talks about his work and approach to design. It was published in Issue 73 of Graphic Design, alongside 100 logo designers. The following was translated from Japanese. Occasionally, it’s a little difficult to follow, however, there’s a lot of interesting insights to be gleaned.
Gorgeous and Delicate, 1974
This is a translation of the article "Gorgeous and Delicate" written by Kazumasa Nagai on the work on Yusaku Kamekura. This was printed alongside 27 of his logos in the Autumn 1974 issue of Quarterly Design.
Fukuda's one-man show in New York, 1967
Here, in an article published in Graphic Design 28, 1967, Katzumie Masaru writes about Shigeo Fukuda’s one-man show in New York.
Recent works of Tanaka Ikko, 1965
In this article from Graphic Design 19, 1965, Ogawa Masataka writes about the work of Ikko Tanaka.
Takenobu Igarashi Graphic Design – A World of Bracing Symbolism, 1975
One morning, I noticed a beautiful postcard among the bulk of mails in the mailbox downstairs. It was the invitation to Takenobu Igarashi's One-Man Show. The purple pencil drawing on the brownish-gray background was so impressive and the white color of the paper as a result of dropout printing looked so clean.
A pioneer in new typeface development, 1976
In this article, published in Idea 135, 1976, Tadasu Fulano writes about the logotypes of Yasaburo Kuwayama, a pioneer in new typeface development.
Pentagram, A London design group, 1971
In this piece from Graphis 158, 1971, Herbert Spencer writes about the formation of British design studio Pentagram.
Pentagram: The work of five designers, 1972
There is something extraordinary in the stimulation of several minds concentrated on a single problem, when ideas are coined, turned over, discarded, resurrected. Such interchanges are perhaps the most rewarding part of a designer's daily life.
Pentagram, 1988
Here, in an article published in Novum Gebrauchsgraphik, January 1988, Herb Flemming writes about Pentagram.
Total Design - A Dutch Design and Consultant Group, 1982
In this article from Graphis 220, 1982, Wim Crouwel writes about the Dutch design consultancy Total Design.
Franco Grignani and His Characteristic Graphic Style
This article was first published in Novum Gebrauchsgraphik, February 1972. It looks at Franco Grignani and his characteristic graphic style.
Selected works of Franco Maria Ricci, 1966
In this article, published in Graphic Design 25, 1966, Masaru Katzumie writes about the work of Franco Maria Ricci.
Art = Design, 1988
In this transcribed lecture from 1988, Karl Gerstner speaks on art and design. It was later printed in his 2001 book ‘Review of 5 x 10 Years of Graphic Design etc.’
Walter Ballmer, 1979
In this piece from Graphis 204, 1979, Glauco Felici writes about Swiss designer Walter Ballmer.
John R. Rieben, 1971
John R. Rieben was born in 1935 in a small German-Swiss community. In 1957 he graduated from the University of Michigan, College of Architecture and Design. After release from military service, two years of which he spent in Paris, he worked for one year in an advertising production studio in Chicago. Then he continued his studies at the Indiana University. In 1962 he obtained his Master's degree in visual communication, and in 1963 he was awarded the Master of Fine Arts. This latter phase of training aroused his interest in the ‘Swiss School’ of functional design. To quote his own words: “...and as part of my degree thesis, I spent a year in Europe on a fellowship visiting designers, studios, type foundries, etc., learning far more in the process than in the formal school situation.”
O.H.W. Hadank † 1965
The memory of Hadank is a cheering and heart warming one: his imposing stature, his calm and powerful personality, his deep and melodious voice. The spell he cast was that of a man who is unwaveringly convinced of the rightness of what he is doing. He exerted a certain fascination upon us young art students. What this brilliant and vital artist was creating was not the huge poster or the outsize trade mark; he busied himself instead with small and delicate work, chiselled to a fine perfection. It was great only because of the balance of its elements, the harmony of its lines, surfaces, caesuras. He wanted his solutions to any problem to satisfy lasting laws and thus to be independent of contemporary taste. He believed that the well-designed form has a language of its own that need not be loud in order to be heard. He never set out to impress, nor even to convince; he wanted to win the observer by pleasing. His own belief and confidence in the deep need for good form sparked over to his clients and ensured their approval of the somewhat reserved note that Hadank struck even in his advertising.
Annegret Biere, 1971
Here, in an article published in Idea 109, 1971, Hiroshi Koojitani writes about German designer Annegret Biere.
The Landor Methodology, 1977
This article introduces The Landor Methodology. This was published in Idea Extra Issue: Walter Landor Associates, 1977.
Milton Glaser, 1972
In this article from Idea 114, 1972, Milton Glaser shares his thoughts on originality, book-cover design and Japanese design.
About Burton Kramer Associates, 1974
In this article, published in Idea 123, 1974, Idea profiles the Canadian studio Burton Kramer Associates.
About Mr. & Mrs. Miho, 1972
In this piece from Idea 111, 1972, Toshihiro Katayama writes about designers James and Tomoko Miho.
Diana Graham, 1985
Here, in an article published in Novum Gebrauchsgraphik, June 1985, Lanny Sommese writes about American designer Diana Graham.
Go behind the logos. Explore 200+ in-depth and meticulously researched logo histories revealing the designers, design decisions and ideas behind the world’s most iconic logos and important brand identities.