Month: February 2021

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Poster for the Spike Lee film, ‘Do the Right Thing.’ Shows a bird’s-eye view of a blue street with a man standing cross-armed by the tail of a car on the left. At right, a man holds a pizza box. Printed in yellow, upper center, with children's feet on either side: It's the hottest day of the summer. / You can do nothing, / you can do something, / or you can... Printed larger in yellow, center: DO THE / RiGHT / THing. Rows composed of colored triangles appear between the lines of text. In light blue, directly to the right: BEd-Stuy. In white, below, written by a young girl with chalk: A Spike Lee Joint. A child-like drawing of a man with a gun and a cop car appear in the lower right. Film credits listed in white at the bottom of the poster. The rating information (R) and the Spectral Recording/Dolby Studio logo appear on the bottom left.
Movie Night! Seven Art Sims Posters for Spike Lee Films
Art Sims (American, born 1954) has designed graphics across entertainment media, but his most famous and prolific work is that for film posters. His collaboration with Academy Award–winning filmmaker Spike Lee (American, born 1957), in particular, has produced some of his most iconic designs. Sims was first drawn to Lee’s work after seeing Lee’s first...
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Matthew Kennedy
Date
February 27, 2021
The front and back covers of a book are shown. A collage of black-and-white photographs completely bleeds off all sides of the two covers. The cut-and-pasted photographs depict Black people of different ages, some with natural Afro hair styles. The title “RE:CREATION” and the author’s name are typeset in red Futura caps. One figure is highlighted with red ink, printed transparently over the black photograph. An outdoor sign for Jackson State College appears on the back cover.
Broadside Press and Black Graphic Design
Broadside: A single sheet of paper printed on one side only. For centuries, broadsides were a popular ephemeral format for distributing news, announcements, advertisements, or commentary in the form of ballads.  Between 1966 and 1975, Broadside Press in Detroit, Michigan published 81 books and dozens of poetry broadsides written and designed by Black writers and...
Read Time
11 minutes
Posted By
Ellen Lupton
Date
February 24, 2021
A poster depicting a bluescale image of the head of a woman with a bouffant hairdo and an unrestrained shouting expression, as words advertising a theatrical production spiral from her mouth, contrasted against a bright yellow, solid background.
Black Theater: A Graphic Design Showcase
Graphic design serves a powerful role in establishing the visual identity of theatrical performance. Cooper Hewitt’s collection offers highlights of graphic design for the work of Black playwrights and composers. Narratives addressing riots and rage; exploring triumph, history, and oppression; or featuring funk, soul, and divas interact with typography, image, and space to tell a...
Read Time
7 minutes
Posted By
Matthew Kennedy
Date
February 22, 2021
White background with black design. Black and white photograph of jazz musician Roscoe Mitchell occupies lower three-quarters of cover, set in black circle, with black concentric rings emanating outward. Upper one-quarter is white with black, blocky stylized lettering: Sound/ Roscoe/ Mitchell, and Sextet perpendicularly.
Laini Abernathy, Black Graphic Designer
Laini (Sylvia) Abernathy (who died in 2010) was an artist, designer, and activist. Cooper Hewitt is collecting album covers designed by this important designer, who contributed to the Black cultural scene in the late 1960s. Abernathy was part of the Black Arts Movement (BAM) in Chicago. BAM, a national movement founded after the assassination of...
Read Time
5 minutes
Posted By
Ellen Lupton
Date
February 10, 2021