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Lance Wyman (born 1937)Case Study: Lance Wyman
''WebEsteem Art & Design Magazine'', 2004 is an American graphic designer known for his work under
After more than 30 years, Metro map is being redesigned by creator Lance Wyman
, washingtonpost.com, June 4, 2011; printed as "An icon's midlife facelift: Metro map must be updated, so its creator goes back to the drawing board", ''The Washington Post'', June 5, 2011, p. A1. grew up in
''WebEsteem Art & Design Magazine'', 2004 is an American graphic designer known for his work under
Pedro Ramirez Vazquez
Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for '' Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter.
The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meani ...
, design concept and direction in developing applications of the logo for the 1968 Summer Olympics
The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
in Ramirez Vazquez's personal office in Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
.
Life and career
Wyman, the son of a commercial fisherman and a typist,Dana Hedgpeth,After more than 30 years, Metro map is being redesigned by creator Lance Wyman
, washingtonpost.com, June 4, 2011; printed as "An icon's midlife facelift: Metro map must be updated, so its creator goes back to the drawing board", ''The Washington Post'', June 5, 2011, p. A1. grew up in
Kearny, New Jersey
Kearny ( ) is a town in the western part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 40,684, He graduated from the Pratt Institute with a degree in industrial design in 1960. The subject of graphic design was just being introduced in American universities at the time; when Wyman met a student who studied
Wyman, who has been described as a "rock star" of graphic arts, made his reputation when he collaborated with Eduardo Terrazas, under the direction of architect Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, in the development of the entire design campaign for the Mexico 1968 Summer Olympic Games. He has also designed icons for museums and many other institutions, individualized signs for buildings at the National Zoo in Washington D.C., and many other symbols. Stepping outside his usual genre, he designed a poster for the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Perhaps his most enduring design is the stylized route map he devised for the Washington Metro in the mid-1970s, prioritizing the clear representation of routes, stations, transfer points, and certain landmarks over showing distances to scale. In 2011, Wyman was called on to design a new Metro map depicting new lines and route orientations, as well as some station names that had been expanded to the point of being cumbersome. It was one of the few occasions in which the original designer has had a chance to revise his own creation. The new map debuted March 19, 2012, and an update was announced on September 12, 2013. Wyman suggested naming the then-under-construction Metro line the Cherry Blossom Line, but it became the Silver Line instead.
Wyman's work was the subject of a retrospective exhibition called "Urban Icons" at El Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC) in Mexico City (2014–15). In 2017, he was awarded the
Lance Wyman, Ltd.
The Wyman map of the Washington Metro system, slightly changed in updates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyman, Lance 1937 births Artists from Newark, New Jersey American graphic designers Pratt Institute alumni Living people AIGA medalists
logo
A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wo ...
design with Paul Rand
Paul Rand (born Peretz Rosenbaum; August 15, 1914 – November 26, 1996) was an American art director and graphic designer, best known for his corporate Logotype, logo designs, including the logos for IBM, United Parcel Service, UPS, Enron, Morn ...
at Yale
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
, he wanted to design logos.
Wyman began his career at General Motors in Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
, Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
, where he worked on a packaging system for Delco automotive parts that unified 1,200 different packages. Later, he moved to the office of William Schmidt, where he produced the graphics for the U.S. pavilion at a 1962 trade fair in Zagreb, Yugoslavia
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
.
In 1963, Wyman moved to New York, where he joined the George Nelson firm. He designed the graphics for the Chrysler Pavilion at the New York World's Fair. He later reported that devising a "pointing hand" themed logo and adapting it to the site directional signs convinced him that logos could play a more important role in an overall design program. In December 1966, he traveled to Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
to work at Pedro Ramirez Vazquez's office, and worked with many other designers in the identity program of the 1968 Summer Olympic Games. Wyman stopped working for the organizing committee in October 1968, he then designed the graphics programs for the Mexico City Metro
The Mexico City Metro ( es, Metro de la Ciudad de México) is a rapid transit system that serves the metropolitan area of Mexico City, including some municipalities in Mexico State. Operated by the Sistema de Transporte Colectivo (STC), it is ...
.
After returning to New York, Wyman formed a partnership with Bill Cannan (Wyman & Cannan). In 1979, he established his own firm, Lance Wyman Ltd. He has also taught corporate and wayfinding design at Parsons School of Design since 1973.
Work
Wyman, who has been described as a "rock star" of graphic arts, made his reputation when he collaborated with Eduardo Terrazas, under the direction of architect Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, in the development of the entire design campaign for the Mexico 1968 Summer Olympic Games. He has also designed icons for museums and many other institutions, individualized signs for buildings at the National Zoo in Washington D.C., and many other symbols. Stepping outside his usual genre, he designed a poster for the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Perhaps his most enduring design is the stylized route map he devised for the Washington Metro in the mid-1970s, prioritizing the clear representation of routes, stations, transfer points, and certain landmarks over showing distances to scale. In 2011, Wyman was called on to design a new Metro map depicting new lines and route orientations, as well as some station names that had been expanded to the point of being cumbersome. It was one of the few occasions in which the original designer has had a chance to revise his own creation. The new map debuted March 19, 2012, and an update was announced on September 12, 2013. Wyman suggested naming the then-under-construction Metro line the Cherry Blossom Line, but it became the Silver Line instead.
Wyman's work was the subject of a retrospective exhibition called "Urban Icons" at El Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC) in Mexico City (2014–15). In 2017, he was awarded the AIGA Medal
Following is a list of AIGA medalists who have been awarded the American Institute of Graphic Arts medal.
On its website, AIGA says "The medal of the AIGA, the most distinguished in the field, is awarded to individuals in recognition of their ex ...
for his "mastery of visual ecosystems and for setting the standard for the universal, public design experience."
References
External links
Lance Wyman, Ltd.
The Wyman map of the Washington Metro system, slightly changed in updates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyman, Lance 1937 births Artists from Newark, New Jersey American graphic designers Pratt Institute alumni Living people AIGA medalists