- We hear about famous logo designers all the time, but few of us actually know their accomplishments and their story
- Let’s take a look at some of the world’s most famous logo designers and their success stories, including Milton Glaser and Chip Kidd
- We can learn from graphic designers and what they’ve created in their lifetimes
We often hear stories of how logo designers have changed the world and many famous graphic designer names are common to hear when you’re in the industry. But the parts of these stories that aren’t mentioned as often are exactly what earned them their famous title and what they’ve done. A lot of these famous graphic designers came from common backgrounds just like young amateur graphic designers starting today with their careers.
If you’re looking for a little inspiration and some encouragement from the world’s most beloved and encouraging logo designers, this is it. We’ve collected a list of famous graphic designers and told the story of their success and how they’ve risen to where they are now with their success below!
Milton Glaser
Few logo designers don’t immediately recognize the name of the iconic graphic designer who was responsible for creating the famous I Love NY logo. Reportedly, the idea first came up when Glaser was riding in the back of a taxi cab on his way to a client meeting. Little did Glaser know that this one idea would lead to his work being seen nearly everywhere.
Glaser is most well known for creating the logo that’s seen on license plates, mugs, apparel, and nearly every other surface imaginable, but he had other famous work as well. In his lifetime, Glaser had many achievements, including creating famous posters and winning National Medal Award in 2009.
Chip Kidd
Chip Kidd is the famous graphic designer that’s most noticed for his work creating captivating book jackets. The most notable book jacket that Kidd designed was for Jurassic Park that fans still see and recognize to this day. This design went much further than just a simple book cover design, it was also integrated into the movie poster design. Ultimately, Kidd’s work for Jurrasic Park became the logo for the franchise and the symbol that fans recognized it for. Although Kidd created many stunning pieces in his lifetime, this is the most well-known piece of his.
Saul Bass
Saul Bass is easily one of the most influential figures in modern graphic design and stands out as one man that changed the design industry. Logo designer and filmmaker Saul Bass was born in New York and is famous for his movie posters. He created some of the most iconic movie posters of all time, including Albert Hitchcocks masterpieces ‘Pyscho’, ‘North By Northwest’, and ‘The Man With The Golden Arm’.
Although those were three of the most famous pieces of his work, Bass created many more iconic posters that he added to his wide collection of work. Although posters are where Bass’s talent was most focused, he also created some iconic logos for businesses in his time. Many of Bass’s logos have become, a few of them being Kleenex, A T & T, and Quaker Oats. Saul Bass is a name recognized by all in the design industry and having touched design and changed it for the world.
Rob Janoff
Rob Janoff is the famous graphic designer that created the iconic Apple logo that we’re all familiar with. Janoff was responsible for what is easily the most memorable and iconic logos in our world today. Although the logo has changed since its original creation in 1977, the original idea and shape of the symbol have stayed the same throughout the years. Janoff’s thought process for the logo was simple; if you had a company named after a fruit, the logo should be the same.
However, the logo wasn’t merely an apple. It had personality and its own character, with a bite being taken out and the original being in rainbow colors. Although the logo has changed over the years, the Apple symbol itself is still the same and the meaning will always be iconic to the company. Although Rob Janoff may not have changed design in the same way that other graphic designers in this list have, he brought his own touch to the universe of graphic design and created a famous logo that no one will forget.
Paul Rand
Paul Rand isn’t only considered to have influenced graphic design, he’s considered the father of graphic design. For a part of his career, Rand spent time teaching at Yale University where he taught graphic design to students and shared his valuable thoughts. Rand created two of the world’s most iconic logos; the IBM logo and the ABC logo. These are two of the world’s most popular logos and are still used to this day.
Rand also wrote a book in 1947 titled, Thoughts On Design. In this book, Rand shared his knowledge on design, his beliefs, and theories of graphic design. Rand was one of the first graphic designers to share his thoughts on practicality and beautiful artwork working together. This book showed new ideas and theories that had been unknown until Ran published his book.
