The History of Graphic Design By: Jimmy Barbree

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The History of Graphic DesignBy Jimmy Barbree
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Historical Applications

• Throughout history graphic design has been used
  to communicate ideas.
• Cave paintings
• Chinese block printing
• Product packaging
• Movable type (e.g. printed books, early printed
  scripts and religious documents).

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Modern Applications

• Today, applications of graphic design, or visual
  communications, range from menus and posters to
  CD cases and book covers.
• Even the Presidents plane, Air Force One, is a
  subject of graphic design.

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Technological Advancements

• Advancements began from early man finding better
  utensils to write with on rocks, and continue
  today with the improvement of computers and
  printers. The Egyptians were to first to write on
  parchment (papyrus root), the Chinese developed
  revolutionary block printing, and Europe
  (Germany) was the birthplace of Gutenbergs
  printing press.
• Today the invent of programs from Microsoft,
  Adobe, and others make the possibilities of
  graphic design nearly endless.

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Notable Figures of Graphic Design

• Johannes Gutenberg inventor of the printing
  press (1440). With this invention of quickly
  produced and repeated type, graphic design was
  changed forever.
• William Caslon and Piet Mondrian were staples in
  the profession during the 1800s.
• In the 1900s, Milton Glaser and Saul Bass
  dominated the graphic design industry.
• In 1981, IBM was the first company to
  personalize the computer, which made it
  possible for nearly everyone today to take part
  in graphic design.

Milton Glaser
Saul Bass
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Saul Bass

• Bass has contributed greatly to the designs of
  popular advertisements in contemporary culture.
• In his prime Bass was sought after to design
  advertisements for all the major companies
  producing the biggest movies and best-selling
  books.

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Milton Glaser

• Glaser was just as sought after as Bass, as they
  were two of the top designers of their era.
• He often competed with Bass for the designs for
  advertisements of the paramount productions of
  the period.

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Cultural Influences

• Popular culture has always been the main
  influence of graphic design.
• In the beginning, design was synchronized with
  religion, as it was the main focus of the era.
• Through the ages the persuasion of design has
  changed with the culture.
• Today, graphic design is focused mostly on
  mainstream art, movies, and literature.

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Modern Design

• Today, aspects of modern design include
  different type faces, pictures, page layouts, and
  the overall appearance of the design.
• These designs are most often applied to posters,
  tattoos, CD cases, web pages, book covers, or
  often just creative designs.

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Modern Design

• Designers today focus on designing around popular
  subjects while making the end result
  aesthetically pleasing.
• To obtain an attractive result designers use
  different fonts, pictures, designs, and layouts.

• Everything from road signs and diagrams for
  instructional purposes to purely artful and
  entertaining subjects are mediums for graphic
  designers.

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Graphic Design Today

• Most graphic designers in todays industry work
  on computers.
• Main opportunities for design come on the
  internet whether its web pages, advertisements,
  or even online gaming.

• Apart from designing for the web, designers still
  use computer programs to create presentations for
  educational purposes and can crop images and
  designs for printing.

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The End