A few months ago I had the opportunity to talk with Martin Venezky about his new book, It is Beautiful…Then Gone. We met for the first time at the Schools of Thought 2 conference in LA. It was right after a very controversial (and fascinating) roundtable called “Reconsidering the Discipline” that was artfully chaired by Sean Donahue of Research Centered Design.
Strangely enough all of the panelists were former or current students of Martin’s. They were getting a lot of critical fire from members of the audience for their quite provocative (and stimulating) views on both the practice and instruction of graphic design. Martin came to their defense in such an eloquent and moving way I had to go up and talk to him.
Though I have followed his work for some time I didn’t realize how rich his thinking on the matter was. Experiencing his book parallels my own encounter with Martin. You will first be drawn in by the beauty of his work, but as you read the text you begin to see the deep care and thought he brings to his work. He is constantly grappling with the design process and his personal voice in each project he undertakes.
It is Beautiful…Then Gone is a superb collection of Martin’s best pieces, but its real treasure lies in the written and visual assemblage of the designer, the teacher, and the man behind a tremendous body of work.
Silas Munro currently is a designer at VSA Partners, INC. in Chicago, IL and affiliated with the design collective Prototype Syndicate. He is the recipient of a year long Design Fellowship from the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, studied poetry at Brown University, and is a burgeoning fine artist and writer of design criticism.
I recall the work of Appetite Engineers fondly. Did Martin lose that name? Too bad. I'll have to take a look at that book. Thx, F
On Aug.03.2005 at 11:32 AM