Michael Bierut: five lessons on graphic design

In graphic design it is essential to consider the needs of the people that are going to be living with the design, says Michael Bierut.

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Michael Bierut - photo by Jake Chessum
Michael Bierut
Pentagram partner Michael Bierut is the winner of hundreds of design awards and has work in permanent collections including MOMA and the Met in New York City.
More on Michael Bierut

Michael Bierut shares five important lessons that he has learnt about graphic design.

  1. Don’t be so darned clever
  2. You get power by giving power away
  3. The real opportunity may not be part of your scope of work
  4. Consistency does not equal sameness
  5. The audience is more wonderful than you think

Bierut show a variety of the some of graphic design work he has done over the years, from posters to corporate identities. 

He also talks about the Robin Hood Foundation and a library initiative that redesigns public school libraries in New York. From poetry to journalistic illustrations and Manga-inspired superheroes, Michael Bierut looks at some of the possibilities for filling the space between the shelves and the ceiling in libraries. 

 

Watch the Talk with Gary Hustwit, Doug Pray, Eames Demetrios, Michael Bierut

Doug Pray, Eames Demetrios, Gary Hustwit 2010
Pray, Demetrios and Hustwit on film and its role in design
Talks • Duration: 00:42:31 • 20 Sep 11
Filmmakers Gary Hustwit, Doug Pray and Eames Demetrios engage in dialogue with Michael Bierut about making movies that deal with design and its possibilities.>