Matthew Liebowitz, H.L. Mencken Speaking, 1958

I’ve spent a lot of time in airports and on American Airlines flights. Like everyone else on earth, I hate when people insist on a conversation. On one flight, the woman next to me talked about her affair, her husband’s affair, how hot the steward was, and why she hated her children. Another time, the flight attendant spilled an entire can of beer on my lap. She was horrified and deeply apologetic, but it was an accident so no big deal. Unfortunately, it meant flying from JFK to LAX and smelling like I was at a frat party. The guy next to me told me every story he had about spilling liquids (wow that was exciting), and then asked if I wanted some underwear from his overnight bag (oi!).

My favorite was a woman who was a famous gospel singer who was flying back from Chicago after being on Oprah. She talked about her upcoming wedding plans for three hours. After three vodka tonics, she became quite friendly and repeatedly said, “Why you are so cute. Let me give you just one kiss.” I reminded her that her fiancé was waiting to pick her up.

As obnoxious as chattering is on airplanes, it’s a good design device. Unless you implant one of those little audio chips, however, you need alternative ways to do this. I love quotation marks. I love talk bubbles. Both are incredible symbols that everyone understands, “Oh, that means someone is talking.” One of my all time favorite solutions is Matthew Liebowitz’s cover for H.L. Mencken Speaking. A single bad image of the author and an uncomfortable composition is brought to life with three pieces of simple punctuation. And, to make it even better, Mencken isn’t speaking. If he were photographed speaking, the cover would be too obvious and make us wonder what he is saying specifically and individually. The closed mouth leads us to hear all of his words.

Sean Adams, Mohawk Show 7

Bradbury Thompson, Westvaco

Doyle, Dane, Bernbach, Better Vision Institute ad

Paula Scher, Public Theater

Synergisms, protest poster, 1971

Lou Dorfsman, CBS ad, 1958

Henry Wolf, Harpers Bazaar, 1958

Gene Frederico, D. Lisner and Co.

Abram Gaines, Silence poster, 1943

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Matthew Liebowitz, promotion, 1947

People often ask me, “Sean, what’s the secret with this whole graphic design thing?” Of course, there is no secret. Or if there is, nobody told me. I can say, however, that a big rule for me is contrast. There is no such thing as too bright, or too much contrast in design. I’m not big on de-saturated colors and soft contrast. Design should be bold. There’s an old saying about teaching a donkey. First you smack it in the head with a two by four, and then give it the message. Now, clearly, I don’t advocate donkey cruelty. But, design is the same. First, get the audience’s attention. Then tell them the story.

Red, white, and black are good choices for contrast and bold statements. I’ve used this combination many times and quite enjoyed it. The danger is looking like a Nazi. The Nazis were rather keen on black and red, so you need to be careful to not appear to be a Facist. Using a little bit of red and a little bit of black isn’t the same thing. Remember: donkey, two-by-four, and big.

Alvin Lustig, book cover, 1940s

Gustav Klustis, poster, 1928

Henry Wolf, Esquire magazine cover, 1955

Henry Wolf, Magazine spread, 1960s

Herbert Matter, Arts and Architecture magazine cover, 1947

AdamsMorioka, Frederator postcard

John Massey, Orchestra Poster, 1960s

Karel Vaca, film poster, 1964

Lester Beall, promotion, 1938

Paul rand, Art Direction magazine cover, 1939

Paul Rand, department store ad, 1947

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