Thursday 21 December 2006
Pentagram
Pentagram have a huge history in the design world, and are still a huge design company today covering most disciplines. Founded by Alan Fletcher and born out of Fletcher, Forbes and Gill, who were the first big British design firm in the 1960's.
Pentagram went onto design famous identities for Shell, Reuters, United Airlines, Star Alliance and Citibank. Pentagram's architectural design's are seen at the Harley Davies Museum and Chester Racecourse, books designs which are too numerous to sum up here, editorial design for the Guardian (1988), The New York Times Magazine, Interactive work for United Airlines, The new York Jets and the M.I.T., Interior designs for Virgin Atlantic's Upper Class cabins and the Natural History Musem. Pentagrams trade marks can be seen on Penguin Books, Phaidon Press, Getty Images and Wagamama, and their packaging is seen at Tesco (finest range), Swatch, Boots Shapers Range, and Tiffany's store in NYC. Pentragam have product designed Dell Computers, Nike Watches and Poloroid Cameras and thie signage systems can be seem in Lower Manhatten, Toronto International Airport, San Francisco Zoo, The National Maritime Museum and the New York Botanical Garden.
This is what was written about them on Wikipedia :
Pentagram is an organisation of designers in London, New York, San Francisco, Austin (Texas) and Berlin. It is built around individual partners who are leading exponents of graphic design, product design, architecture and interior design,.
Unbeguiled by business fashions, sceptical of hype and style, Pentagram pursues its own visions of integrity and excellence in a system simply developed for the purpose of design. Here creativity is not decoration; it is the clear expression of ideas. Humour, humanity and passion for the craft of design play as important role as profit.
Pentagram offices are places where designers work. The partners head up their own groups of designers, collaborating with other partners as the need arises, both within and across design disciplines, locally and internationally. Each group is autonomous, dedicated to the partners’ work. The approach keeps the partner clearly in front of each job, accessible to clients, accessible to the design team. There are no traditional management hierarchies, no closed doors or executive suites. This organisation is unique amongst design consultancies.
The partners subscribe to this organisation and its ideals by working for their clients in the name of Pentagram. This commitment is carried beyond their commercial work to publishing articles and books, advising institutions and governments, sponsoring lectures and educational projects, judging and lecturing.
The system has proved to be durable. Since it was formed, in 1972 Pentagram has grown steadily by appointing new partners with their own design teams and occasionally opening new offices. The optimum size of partners’ groups remains the same. As an entity Pentagram represents a formidable resource; each partner contributes to it and is able to draw upon it to the lasting benefit of designers and clients alike.
My view:
Pentagram are basically huge, have been creatively successful almost as long as I have lived (34 years), and have been seen by everyone, making their mark on everyday things such as newspapers and supermarket packaging as well as more specialist work. Pentagram have grown so can't be compared against many other design companies, and although they seem the slightly more conservative and corporate end of design, I do feel better knowing that there is money to be made in this business, as it is my personal mission to balance the creative with the financially successful when I finish college and start work.
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