The Push Pin Studio

The origin and philosophy of the Push Pin Studio began with a new approach to illustration, evolving from the theft of illustration by photography. As photography stole the traditional role and function of illustration a more conceptual approach developed. A group of young art students, Seymour Chwast, Milton Glaser, Reynolds Ruffins and Edward Sorel shared a loft studio in New York. Upon graduation from Cooper Union in 1951 Glaser received a scholarship to study under Giorgio Morandi in Italy. The other three found employment in New York doing advertisements and publishing. Freelance work was solicited through a collaborative and joint publication, released bimonthly, called The Push Pin Almanack. The Almanack featured editorial material from old almanacs illustrated by the group. Glaser returned from Ital near the end of 1954 and the Push Pin Studio was born.  Ruffins left the studio early on to become an illustrator on his own. Sorel left several years later to do freelance work on his own. Glaser and Chwast continued their partnership for two decades. Glaser then left to pursue other interests including, magazine, corporate and, environmental design. Chwast remained as the director the studio, now called the Pushpin Group and The Push Pin Almanack became the Push Pin Graphic, an experimental magazine prociding a forum for presenting new ideas and techniques.

The philosophies and personal visions of the artists of Push Pin Studio had an influence in the design community on a global scale. Graphic design had often been separated into various tasks, such as image making or illustration and layout or design. Glaser and Chwast combined these roles into one encompassing communicative vision of the creator or creators. This role also involved the conception and design of the printed page. They would freely use imagery from many resources such as Renaissance paintings and comic books as a source for inspiration and ideas. Paraphrasing and incorporating a multitude of ideas in their work, reshaping them into new and unexpected forms. Much as I am doing now by gathering information and interpreting it in my own words and expressions.

Milton Glaser reinvented himself and his work many times throughout his career, becoming a diverse and powerful creative force. He explored many new techniques and forms. In the 1960s his images were created using flat shapes formed by thin black contours and applying color with adhesive films. This style can be seen in the record album cover for The Sound of Harlem. This creative style echoed many diverse forms of art. His ability to evolve his work continuously allowed to stay ahead of and not be consumed the work of many other artists who would imitate his work repeatedly.

His work evolved into another innovate form inspired by Picasso aquatints and oriental calligraphic brush drawings. He began to create silhouette wash drawings that suggest the subject but force the viewer to fill in the details. Glaser manifested this ability to combine his vision with the content in his album covers and poster designs. His design for a poster of Bob Dylan in 1967 exemplifies these concepts in a single image and became an icon for American culture and was known around the world. The album this artwork was included with sold nearly six million copies. These color techniques are also evident in a rejected poster, for a Dada and Surrealism exhibition and in a poser design for Poppy Records. Both encompassing these early concepts of color and combining influences into a cohesive design but also moving further into surrealism, through both image and concept.

He later went onto explore these even further and becoming more interested in illusions and dimensionality. In his mind geometric forms, words and numbers are not just abstract forms, but entities of their own, allowing for them to be interpreted by the artist to be used as elements in conceptual iconography. This created a powerful communication from the designer to the viewer perceiving it and filling in the concept on their own.

Chwast’s vision although very personal communicated on a very universal level. Frequently employing much of the same techniques as Glaser but also exploring other forms of creation and media. Combining such forms as children’s art, primitive art, folk art, expressionist woodcuts and comic book art to achieve new styles and forms. Using color in intense ways contrasting against Glaser’s spatial depth usually maintaining absolute flatness in his work as evidenced in his poser for Judy Garland and his album cover for The Threepenny Opera. Integrating figurative and alphabetic information and his ability to synthesize diverse sources enabled him to produce unique and unexpected designs. Such as his advertisement for Elektra Productions announcing that they were moving locations. Both Chwast and Glaser developed many typefaces. Usually beginning for a single use in particular designs but later developed into full alphabets, often working from and modifying each other’s typefaces.

The term Push Pin Style became widely used to describe the studio’s work, influence and style. The vision of which was an attitude about visual communication and openness about new forms, techniques and solutions. Also reinterpreting work from earlier periods and building upon that work into an ability to integrate word and image into a singular communicative form.