Rob Goodlatte

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Ladislav Sutnar was one of the great graphic designers of the 20th century. His work is a nearly inexhaustable source of inspiration, particularly for design on the Web. His designs were amazingly purpose-driven—every detail was meticulously justified, including choice of shape, color, and layout. Sutnar’s work was vast, including graphic design, toy design, even the formatting of telephone numbers (Bell hired him to design the visual formatting of area codes).

The prolific Steven Heller, in a presentation on Sutnar’s work said:†

“Sutnar is the pioneer of the Web, fifty years before the Web ever existed”

Sutnar pioneered concepts of visual hierarchy and data graphics with his work in designing catalog spreads. He wrote extensively on the subject, penning what many deem the “holy grail” of graphic design for both its rarity and insight, Catalog Design Progress. In the book, he discusses topics such as dynamism—the creation of visual interest to draw the eye, visual hierarchy, and using color to distinguish and designate rather than decorate.

Viewing Sutnar’s sketches is nothing short of a revelation. They display the core elements of graphic design—shape, hierarchy, order, and color. It’s clear he first focused his attention on solving the overall design problem, drawing out his solution in the simplest graphic language possible. It’s a bit like getting a glimpse at Einstein’s scratch paper—you get a look at the problem solving process that produces fantastically rationalized work. The sketches abstract away all decoration, leaving only the kernel of a design.

Sutnar’s sketches exemplify why the sketchbook is such an important tool for designers. Sketches require you to sort out the big-picture visual problems you’re trying to solve. If a design doesn’t work in a sketchbook, no amount of added decoration will fix its structural flaws.

† Heller’s presentation on Sutnar is included in a fantastic video podcast from the School of Visual Arts’ Paul Rand lecture series.

 

1. Joshua Clanton December 29th at 12:54 pm

   Thanks for the link to the podcast. It looks quite promising.

2. Graphic Designs December 30th at 10:46 pm

   [...] Ladislav Sutnar’s Sketchbook [...]

3. Hear Me Speak in February — RobGoodlatte.com January 28th at 3:37 am

   [...] I’ll also be exploring the problem solving processes of great designers like Paul Rand and Ladislav Sutnar, drawing parallels to Web design. It’s about 30 minutes long, plus 5-10 minutes for [...]

 

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