Paul Rand, IBM,
Identity in the Corporate

The use of a Design guide is an industry standard today, however, this was not the case for corporate design in 1965. In addition to making a guide for company designers, the manual served another important use; It allowed Rand to explain his work to his clients, serving both as an argument for why his solution was the correct one, and as a tool for the client (who might not understand the design process) to gain insight into the work they are paying for.

Influences

Paul Rand was recognized for his talent throughout most of his career. He taught students and wrote a lot about his thoughts and approach to design, meaning insight into his process and his professional life is quite accessible. Rand was a skilled communicator as well as a man that was deeply submerged in his craft.

Benjamin Nicholes wrote his senior thesis at Liberty University on Paul Rand’s life, work and philosophy. Through his abridged biography, we see how Rand lived out his life philosophy – that design is a way of life, and we can see how Rand arranged his life in such a way that allowed him to do his work.

Paul Rand was born in New York in 1914, only a month after WW1 started. When the war ended in 1918, post-war commerce helped make the U.S. the world’s largest economy. Following the economic boom, the roaring 20s describes a time of major shifts in American culture and society, characterized by increased spending and prosperity. Eventually, the stock market crashed in the 30s, triggering the worldwide recession known as the great depression. As a result, Mass unemployment hits USA. Almost 25% of the workforce was out of work by 1933.

This era of instability was the backdrop of Rand’s adolescence. Although he was clearly interested in art from a young age, he was discouraged by his parents who were worried he would not be able to support himself as an artist. Yet, they helped him pay tuition fees for evening art classes on the condition he attended his regular non-art classes by day.

As for design-influences, American design had not yet modernized the way European design had in the early 20^th century. It was European immigrants escaping political totalitarianism who first introduced Americans to European avant-garde, which American designers borrowed freely from as they moved towards an original American approach to modernist design. European design was often theoretical and highly structured, while American design was less formal in its approach to organizing space.

Unique aspects of American culture and society informed the American approach to modern design. The United States is an egalitarian society with capitalistic values, limited artistic traditions before World War II, and a diverse ethnic heritage. In this highly competitive society, novelty of technique and originality of concept were much prized, and designers sought to simultaneously solve communications problems, present information directly, and satisfy the need for personal expression.⁵

The story Benjamin Nicholes tells about Rand is one where he goes slightly off path to pave way for his own. Rand skipped classes he lacked interest in to do extra curriculum in art, but in his professional life he always went the extra mile to deliver more than he had to. Growing up in the highly competitive melting pot that is New York, he understood that the most reliable way to make a name for yourself is to gain a reputation for your work ethic, that you are someone who can be relied on to deliver high quality work. Where Rand’s particularly American attitudes regarding his work ethics are expressed however, is that in addition to being a reliable worker he also never sacrificed his individual expression. Early on in his career he would decline prestigious job offers he felt he was not yet qualified to do (although he somehow eventually would end up accepting the jobs anyway), and he was also known to negotiate conditions and bow his head if it allowed him artistic freedom.

Paul Rand’s true name was Peretz Rosenbaum, but at the outset of his professional life he anglicized his name. In 1935s America having a Jewish name could get in the way of business opportunities. Paul Rand though of designing as problem solving, and by changing his name, he also “rebranded” himself. As antisemitism grew in the run-up to World War II, he re-designed his identity in a way that functioned with the societal problems of his surroundings.

While World War II left most industrial countries devastated, The US came out of the war as a winner with manufacturing capacity mostly undamaged. This allowed for an era of unprecedented industrial expansion, and large corporations started playing an important role in developing and marketing products and services.⁶

Seeing as corporation’s role in American society increased drastically during the 50s and 60s, it was only natural that many designers – among them Paul Rand – embraced corporate visual identification as a design activity. His legacy is the result of the negotiation between his individual need to do submerge himself in his work, and his readiness to do what society needed from him.