Steven Heller (design writer) explained

Steven Heller
Birth Date:July 7, 1950
Birth Place:New York City
Occupation:Writer and design historian
Spouse:Louise Fili

Steven Heller (born July 7, 1950)[1] is an American art director, journalist, critic, author, and editor who specializes in topics related to graphic design.

Biography

Early life and education

Steven Heller was born July 7, 1950, in New York City to Bernice and Milton Heller. He attended the Walden School, a progressive prep school on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, as well as military school. In 1968, he enrolled at New York University with a major in English, later transferring to the School of Visual Arts illustration and cartoon program but not graduating from either.

Art director

In 1968, he became the art director of the New York Free Press without formal education or credentials because of his leftist leanings, later attending some New York University lectures utilizing his press pass. He met illustrator Brad Holland, who convinced him page layouts and type choices mattered, of which Heller was previously unconcerned. After the Free Press, he moved on to various publications, including the pornography tabloid Screw.[2] [3]

In 1974, Heller became the youngest art director for The New York Times Op-Ed page, replacing Jean-Claude Suares. His interest in illustration employed on the Op-Ed page led him to publish collections on the subject. He became the art director of The New York Times Book Review in 1977.

In the 1980s, he became interested in design through friendships with Seymour Chwast and Louise Fili, who he later married, as well as becoming the editor of the AIGA Journal of Graphic Design. Under his care, the Journal became a place of critical design writing, inviting authors from a variety of professions and nurturing the careers of fledgling critics, who documented design writing.

In 2007, he began a transition from his 30-year career at the New York Times. The changes created a lot of stress, and his Parkinson's disease was either triggered or exacerbated.

Educator

In the late 1960s, after leaving SVA, Heller was hired to teach a newspaper design class.[4]

In 1984, he helped create the master's program for illustration at the School of Visual Arts. In 1998, Heller and Lita Talarico co-founded the MFA Design Program, the school's first graduate program in design. In 2008, Heller co-founded SVA's MFA in Design Criticism program (D-Crit) with Alice Twemlow. The program was intended to help non-designers find a place in the design field.

As of 2019, he served on the faculty of the School of Visual Arts as co-chair of the MFA Design Department, special assistant to the president, and co-founder of the MFA Design Criticism, MPS Branding, MFA Interaction Design, MFA Products of Design programs.[5] Heller's pupils have included Deborah Adler.[6]

In 2024, he and Talarico retired as co-chairs of SVA's MFA Design Program, succeeded by Randy J. Hunt.

Awards and recognition

In 1996, he was inducted into the Art Directors Club Hall of Fame. In 1999, Heller received an AIGA Medal for what designer Paula Scher described as "lifetime achievement that comes from a workday existing roughly between 4:30 and 8:45 A.M. before a full workday at the New York Times Book Review."[7] The Society of Illustrators honored Heller with the Richard Gangel Art Director Award in 2005.[8] In 2017, the AIGA named an award, the Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary, in his honor, citing his three decades of contributions to cultural discourse on design.[9] In 2011, was awarded the Design Mind Award by the National Design Museum.[10]

Writing

Heller has said he writes so that he "can further discover and share what I've learned with others" and as a way to study topics he is curious about, notably the emergence of right- and left-wing tyrannies and pre-World War II totalitarianism. The subjects he writes about are seen through the lens of graphic design and are motivated by not being able to sleep and how design manipulates and communicates.

Articles

Heller is author and co-author of many works on the history of illustration, typography, and many subjects related to graphic design. He has published more than eighty titles and written articles for magazines including Affiche, Baseline, Creation, Design, Design Issues, Design Observer, Eye, Graphis, How, I.D., Oxymoron, Mother Jones, The New York Times Book Review, Print, Speak, and U&lc magazine. For thirty-three years Heller was a senior art director of U&lc magazine, a publication devoted to typography.

Books (partial list)

Heller has written, co-authored, and/or edited more than 130 books about design and popular culture. He worked with Seymour Chwast to create Push Pin Editions and more than 20 books for Chronicle Books with his wife, Louise Fili.[11]

Exhibitions (as curator)

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Career Advice Articles - Career Tips & Job Search Help. October 19, 2015 . 28 May 2018.
  2. Web site: Steven Heller. ADC • Global Awards & Club. 2019-06-06.
  3. Web site: How Steven Heller Redefined the Design Industry. Aldhahi. Mariam. 2017-02-08. Magenta. 2019-06-06.
  4. Web site: October 4, 2022 . Steven Heller Gets Personal in His New Autobiography Growing Up Underground . October 4, 2022 . AIGA Eye on Design.
  5. Web site: School of Visual Arts SVA New York City > Faculty. www.sva.edu. 2019-06-06.
  6. Web site: Women Lead supporter interview series: Deborah Adler. 28 May 2018.
  7. Web site: Scher . Paula . Steven Heller . AIGA . 26 March 2019.
  8. Web site: Steven Heller Society of Illustrators. www.societyillustrators.org. 2019-06-06.
  9. Web site: Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary . AIGA . 26 March 2019.
  10. Web site: 2011 National Design Awards: Design Mind Award – Steven Heller . 2011-12-09. Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum. 2019-06-06.
  11. Web site: Steven Heller. Designers & Books. 2019-06-06.
  12. Book: Heller, Steven. Innovators of American illustration. June 1986. Van Nostrand Reinhold. 9780442232306.
  13. Book: Design Culture: An Anthology of Writing from the AIGA Journal of Graphic Design. Finamore. Marie. Heller. Steven. 1997-09-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781621531708.
  14. Book: Sourcebook of visual ideas. Heller. Steven. Chwast. Seymour. 1989. Van Nostrand Reinhold. 9780442232719.
  15. Book: Designing with illustration. registration. Heller. Steven. Pomeroy. Karen. 1990. Van Nostrand Reinhold. 9780442232771.
  16. Book: Borrowed design: use and abuse of historical form. Heller. Steven. Lasky. Julie. 1993-01-01. Van Nostrand Reinhold. 9780442008406.
  17. Book: Italian Art Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. 1993. Chronicle Books. 9780811802871.
  18. Book: Streamline: American Art Deco Graphic Design. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. 1995. Chronicle Books. 9780811806626.
  19. Book: Japanese modern: graphic design between the wars. Fraser. James. Heller. Steven. Chwast. Seymour. May 1996. Chronicle Books. 9780811805094.
  20. Book: Heller, Steven. Design Literacy (continued): Understanding Graphic Design. 1999. Skyhorse Publishing Inc.. 9781581150353.
  21. Book: Paul Rand. registration. Heller. Steven. Rand. Paul. Helfand. Jessica. 1999-05-31. Phaidon.
  22. Book: Anatomy of Design: Uncovering the Influences and Inspiration in Modern Graphic Design. Heller. Steven. Ilic. Mirko. 2009-03-01. Rockport Publishers. 9781610601580.
  23. Book: Typology: Type Design from the Victorian Era to the Digital Age. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. June 1999. Chronicle Books. 9780811823081.
  24. Book: British Modern: Graphic Design Between the Wars. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. 2001-12-01. Diane Pub Co. 9780788198502 .
  25. Book: Red Scared!: The Commie Menace in Propaganda and Popular Culture. Barson. Michael. Heller. Steven. April 2001. Chronicle Books. 9780811828871.
  26. Book: This Way - That Way: Prints + Posters Exhibitions + Environments. Godard. Keith. Schlossberg. Edwin. Heller. Steven. September 2001. Elsevier. 9783907078631.
  27. Book: Heller, Steven. Design Humor: The Art of Graphic Wit. registration. 2002. Allworth Press. 9781581152463.
  28. Book: Citizen Designer: Perspectives on Design Responsibility. Heller. Steven. Vienne. Veronique. 2003-05-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781581159363.
  29. Book: Heller, Steven. Teaching Graphic Design: Course Offerings and Class Projects from the Leading Graduate and Undergraduate Programs. 2003-09-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781581159660.
  30. Book: Heller, Steven. Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design. 2004-07-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781581159448.
  31. Book: Inside the Business of Illustration. Heller. Steven. Arisman. Marshall. October 2004. Allworth. 9781581153866.
  32. Book: Times Square Style: Graphics from the Great White Way. Levi. Vicki Gold. Heller. Steven. 2004-08-12. Princeton Architectural Press. 9781568984902.
  33. Book: Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. 2005-01-11. Chronicle Books. 9780811845328.
  34. Book: Nigel Holmes: On Information Design. Heller. Steven. Holmes. Nigel. 2006. Jorge Pinto Books Inc.. 9780977472406.
  35. Book: Stylepedia: A Guide to Graphic Design Mannerisms, Quirks, and Conceits. Heller. Steven. Fili. Louise. 2006-11-09. Chronicle Books. 9780811833462.
  36. Book: Heller, Steven. Design Disasters: Great Designers, Fabulous Failure, and Lessons Learned. 2008-10-28. Allworth Press. 9781581159707.
  37. Book: Design Entrepreneur: Turning Graphic Design Into Goods That Sell. Heller. Steven. Talarico. Lita. 2008. Rockport Publishers. 9781616736491.
  38. Book: Design School Confidential: Extraordinary Class Projects From the International Design Schools, Colleges, and Institutes. Heller. Steven. Talarico. Lita. 2009-10-01. Rockport Publishers. 9781616736286.
  39. Book: Becoming a Graphic Designer: A Guide to Careers in Design. Heller. Steven. Fernandes. Teresa. 2010-02-19. John Wiley & Sons. 9780470148686.
  40. Book: Heller, Steven. The Swastika: Symbol Beyond Redemption?. 2010-06-29. Simon and Schuster. 9781581157895.
  41. Book: Becoming a Digital Designer: A Guide to Careers in Web, Video, Broadcast, Game and Animation Design. Heller. Steven. Womack. David. 2011-01-19. John Wiley & Sons. 9781118034217.
  42. Book: Design School: Extraordinary Class Projects From International Design Schools. Heller. Steven. Talarico. Lita. October 2011. Rockport Publishers. 9781592537594.
  43. Book: Heller, Steven. Graphic Design Reader. 2012-02-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781581159745.
  44. Book: Stop, Think, Go, Do: How Typography and Graphic Design Influence Behavior. Heller. Steven. Ilic. Mirko. May 2012. Rockport Publishers. 9781592537662.
  45. Book: Design Firms Open for Business. Heller. Steven. Talarico. Lita. 2013-03-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781621535843.
  46. Book: Lettering Large: Art and Design of Monumental Typography. Heller. Steven. Ilić. Mirko. 2013. The Monacelli Press, LLC. 9781580933599.
  47. Book: Heller, Steven. Writing and Research for Graphic Designers: A Designer's Manual to Strategic Communication and Presentation. 2013-01-18. Rockport Publishers. 9781592538041.
  48. Book: Becoming a Graphic and Digital Designer: A Guide to Careers in Design. Heller. Steven. Vienne. Veronique. 2015-04-29. John Wiley & Sons. 9781119044963.
  49. Book: Heller, Steven. Graphic Style Lab: Develop Your Own Style with 50 Hands-On Exercises. 2015-01-28. Rockport Publishers. 9781592539109.
  50. Book: Becoming a Design Entrepreneur: How to Launch Your Design-Driven Ventures from Apps to Zines. Talarico. Lita. Heller. Steven. 2016-11-01. Simon and Schuster. 9781621535140.
  51. Book: Heller, Steven. Graphic Design Rants and Raves: Bon Mots on Persuasion, Entertainment, Education, Culture, and Practice. 2017-01-03. Simon and Schuster. 9781621535393.
  52. Book: The Design of Dissent, Expanded Edition: Greed, Nationalism, Alternative Facts, and the Resistance. Glaser. Milton. Ilic. Mirko. Kushner. Tony. Heller. Steven. 2017-09-05. Rockport Publishers. 9781631594243.
  53. Book: The Moderns: Midcentury American Graphic Design. Heller. Steven. D'Onofrio. Greg. 2017-09-19. Abrams. 9781683350125.
  54. Book: 100 Ideas that Changed Graphic Design. Heller. Steven. Vienne. Veronique. 2019-01-22. Laurence King Publishing. 9781786273895.
  55. Book: Heller, Steven. Teaching Graphic Design History. 2019-06-18. Simon and Schuster. 9781621536857.
  56. Web site: Growing Up Underground . 2022-10-04 . Princeton Architectural Press . en.
  57. Web site: An interview with Steven Heller. 2019-08-10. Logo Geek. en-GB . Ian . Paget . 2019-08-14.

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