Neville Brody

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Neville Brody
Neville Brody TYPO SF 2012.jpg
Neville Brody at the TYPO conference in San Francisco, 2012
Born
Neville Brody

(1957-04-23) 23 April 1957 (age 64)
Southgate, London, England
OccupationGraphic designer, typographer, art director

Neville Brody (born 23 April 1957) is an English graphic designer, typographer and art director.[1]

Neville Brody is an alumnus of the London College of Communication and Hornsey College of Art, and is known for his work on The Face magazine (1981–1986), Arena magazine (1987–1990), as well as for designing record covers for artists such as Clock DVA, Cabaret Voltaire, The Bongos, 23 Skidoo and Depeche Mode. He created the company Research Studios in 1994 and is a founding member of Fontworks. His work is included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).[2] He was the Dean of the School of Communication at the Royal College of Art, London until September 2018. He is now Professor of Communication.

Early life and education[]

Brody was born in Southgate, London. He attended Minchenden Grammar School and studied A-Level Art, very much from a fine art viewpoint. In 1975 Brody went on to do a Fine Art foundation course at Hornsey College of Art.

In Autumn 1976, Brody started a three-year B.A. course in graphics at the London College of Printing. His work was influenced by the emergence of punk rock in London life. He designed posters for student concerts at the college, most notably for Pere Ubu, supported by The Human League.

His first-year thesis was based around a comparison between Dadaism and pop art.

1980s: Art Direction[]

Brody's experimentation with his self-made sans-serif typography, along with his Pop Art and Dadaism influence, caught the attention of music record companies such as Fetish Records and Stiff records after he left college. His record cover designs lead toward a grudgy and a punk scene. The album Micro-Phonies by Cabaret Voltaire was art directed by Brody in 1984. His infamous typography features on the front and a bandaged figure spouting liquid from the mouth stares blankly at the viewer.[3]

Brody made his name largely popular through his work as art director for The Face. He changed the "basic" and "structural" rules that existed in the British culture into a more artsy and vibrant aesthetic.[citation needed] His designs provoked some form of emotion to the extent that people would stick to one page instead of turning pages like they would normally do when reading a novel.[citation needed] Other international magazine and newspaper directions have included City Limits, , , and Arena, together with the radical new look for two leading British newspapers The Guardian and The Observer (both newspaper and magazine).[citation needed]

In 1988 Thames & Hudson published the first of two volumes about his work, which became the world's best selling graphic design book.[citation needed] Combined sales now exceed 120,000.[citation needed] An accompanying exhibition of his work at the Victoria and Albert Museum attracted over 40,000 visitors[citation needed] before touring Europe and Japan. Amongst countless other projects, in 1989, upon request by the then-director Gerhard Coenen, to Neville Brody, the young Swiss graphic artist and typeface designer Cornel Windlin, then working at the then called "Neville Brody Studio" designed the Corporate Identity for the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (House of World Cultures) in Berlin, Germany. Subsequently, Brody, Windlin, and staff Simon Staines, Giles Dunn and others visited Berlin more than once on projects; resulting in several collaborations with Berlin-based graphic artist and typeface-designer Kolja Gruber and artist Nina Fischer for the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in the following years.

Business and Typography[]

In 1991, Neville Brody and Jon Wozencroft created the project. is an interactive magazine that sets out to challenge our current ideas about typographic and visual language in an age of ever changing communications technology and media.[4] Brody was also partly responsible for instigating the fusion between a magazine, graphics design and typeface design. The magazine ranges in themes from "Codes" and "Runes" to "Religion" and "Pornography." the exploration and freedom that the publishers exhibit is undeniable and exciting. The conventions upturned in FUSE are prescient in their definition of new standards.[5] Each package includes a publication with articles relating to typography and surrounding subjects, four brand new fonts that are unique and revolutionary in some shape or form and four posters designed by the type designer usually using little more than their included font. In 1990 he also founded the FontFont typeface library together with Erik Spiekermann.

Notable fonts include the updated font for the Times newspaper, Times Modern, New Deal as used in publicity material and titles for the film Public Enemies and Industria.

1994-Present[]

Neville Brody still also continues to work as a graphic designer and together with business partner Fwa Richards launched his own design practice, Research Studios, in London in 1994. Since then studios have been opened in Paris, Berlin and Barcelona. The company is best known for its ability to create new visual languages for a variety of applications ranging from publishing to film.[clarification needed] It also creates packaging and website design, corporate identity for clients, and on-screen graphics.

Recent projects include the redesign of the BBC in September 2011, The Times in November 2006 with the creation of a new font Times Modern. The typeface shares many visual similarities with Mercury designed by Jonathan Hoefler. It is the first new font at the newspaper since it introduced Times New Roman in 1932.

The company also completed a visual identity project for the Paris contemporary art exhibition Nuit Blanche in 2006.

Brody's team launched a new look for the champagne brand Dom Pérignon in February 2007, having been appointed in 2004 to help the brand with its strategy and repositioning.[citation needed] A sister company, Research Publishing, produces and publishes experimental multi-media works by young artists. The primary focus is on FUSE, the conference and quarterly forum for experimental typography and communications. The publication is approaching its 20th issue over a publishing period of over ten years. Three FUSE conferences have so far been held, in London, San Francisco and Berlin. The conferences bring together speakers from design, architecture, sound, film and interactive design and web.[citation needed]

As of 2017, the Welsh WJEC exam board included Neville Brody as part of their Graphic Design curriculum.

Work[]

Music[]

Fetish Records[]

Art Director (1980)

  • Your Mum, Album Cover (1981)
  • Bush Tetras, "Das Ah Riot/Boom", Single Cover (1981)
  • The Bongos, Time and the River, EP Cover (1981)
  • The Bongos, "Zebra Club", Single Cover (1981)
  • The Bongos, "In The Congo/Hunting/Mambo Sun", Single Cover (1981)
  • Clock DVA, "4 Hours", Single Cover (1981)
  • Clock DVA, Thirst, Album Cover (1981)
  • 23 Skidoo, The Gospel Comes To New Guinea/Last Words, Single cover (1981)
  • 23 Skidoo, Seven Songs, Album Cover (1982)
  • 23 Skidoo, Tearing Up The Plans, EP cover (1981)
  • Throbbing Gristle, Five Albums Album Cover (1982)
  • 8 Eyed Spy, "Diddy Wah Diddy" Single Cover (1982)
  • Z'EV, "Wipe Out/Element L" Single Cover (1982)
  • Stephen Mallinder, Pow Wow Album Cover (1982)
  • Various Artists, Last Testament Album Cover (1982)

Cabaret Voltaire[]

  • Numerous T-shirt, badge and poster designs.
  • "3 Crepuscule Tracks" 12" Single Cover (1981)
  • "Red Mecca" Album Cover (1981)
  • "Crackdown/Just Fascination" 12" Single Cover (1983)
  • "Just Fascination" 7" Single Cover (1983)
  • "James Brown" 12" Single Cover (1984)
  • "Microphonies" Album Cover (1984)
  • "The Covenant, The Sword and the Arm of the Lord" Album Cover (1985)
  • "Code" Album Cover (1987)

Other[]

  • 23 Skidoo, "The Culling Is Coming" Album Cover (1983)
  • 23 Skidoo, Coup, Single cover (1984)
  • 23 Skidoo, Urban Gamelan, Album cover (1984)
  • 23 Skidoo, Language, Single cover (1984)
  • 23 Skidoo, Thoughts Of You, Single cover (1985)
  • 23 Skidoo, Beyond Time, Album cover (2013)
  • Defunkt, "The Razor's Edge" 12" Single Cover (1982)
  • Depeche Mode, "Just Can't Get Enough" Single Cover (1982)
  • Level 42, "Standing in the Light" Album Cover (1983)
  • Level 42, "Micro-Kid" Single Cover (1983)
  • Elephant Talk, Album Cover (1983)
  • Kurtis Blow, "Party Time" 12" single Cover, Club Records (1985)
  • Jamie J. Morgan, Shotgun Album cover
  • Raybeats, "Holiday Inn Spain/Cocktails" 7" single cover on Don't Fall Off The Mountain label (1981)
  • Zuice, "Everyone A Winner" Album Cover (1986)
  • Zuice, "I'm Burning" Album Cover (1987)
  • Zuice, "Bless Your Lucky Stars " Album Cover (1987)
  • Zuice, "shought owt to all the run it straight crew an all mah dirty-30 ninjas out der tongan crip souljah 4 life" Album Cover (1987)

Magazine work[]

  • 1981–1986 Art director for The Face magazine
  • 1987–1990 Art director for Arena magazine.

Misc[]

Accomplishments[]

  • Design for Tribeca Issey Miyake in New York with Frank Gehry[citation needed]
  • Major contributor to FUSE, an influential publication on experimental typography
  • London's Victoria & Albert Museum hosted an exhibition of Brody's work[citation needed]
  • D&AD President's Award 2011

Fonts by Brody[]

Brody has designed 21 font families, including:[8]

  • Arcadia
  • FF Autotrace
  • FF Blur
  • FF Dirty 1
  • FF Dirty 2
  • FF Dirty 3
  • FF Dirty 4
  • FF Dirty 6
  • FF Dirty 6.9
  • FF Dirty 7
  • FF Dirty 7.2
  • FF Dirty 7.9
  • FF Dome
  • FF Gothic
  • FF Harlem
  • Industria
  • Insignia
  • FF Meta Subnormal
  • FF Pop
  • FF Tokyo
  • FF Typeface 4
  • FF Typeface 6 & 7
  • FF Tyson
  • FF World

References[]

  1. ^ Harper, Laurel (1999). Radical graphics/graphic radicals. Chronicle Books. pp. 38–. ISBN 978-0-8118-1680-9. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  2. ^ Fonts: 23 New Faces in MoMA’s Collection
  3. ^ "CABARET VOLTAIRE – MICRO-PHONIES: NEVILLE BRODY 1984".
  4. ^ "Fuse". www.archive.researchstudios.com. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
  5. ^ Hamamoto, Chris. "Fuse 1-20". Typographica.
  6. ^ ArtLinkArt - 2010 GET IT LOUDER: SHARISM (BEIJING)
  7. ^ Art Daily - Get It Louder: China's Most Influential and Closely-Watched Exhibition of Emerging, Young Talent
  8. ^ www.myfonts.com
  • The Graphic Language Of Neville Brody, Jon Wozencroft (1988) ISBN 0-500-27496-7
  • The Graphic Language of Neville Brody 2, Jon Wozencroft (1994) ISBN 0-500-27770-2

External links[]

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