Herb Lubalin's Life And Accomplishments

Herbert F. Lubalin was born March 17, 1918. He was an American graphic designer. He designed typefaces, one is called ITC Avant Garde. Herb entered Cooper Union when he was 17. He graduated in 1939. He had a difficult time finding work, he was fired from his job at a display firm after asking for a raise. He eventually got a job at Reiss Advertising, and later worked for Sudler & Hennessey. His first typeface was Pistilli Roman, he designed it in 1964. Herb worked with Sudler for 19 years before leaving to start his own firm. He left in 1964 and his firm was called Herb Lubalin, Inc.

Herb Lubalin was colorblind and ambidextrous. He was a key figure in advertising in the 1960s. He introduced expressive typography into print advertising. He

He got more popular and widely known around this time, mostly for his work on magazines published by Ralph Ginzburg. One of them are Eros, which was about the beauty of the increasing sense of sexuality and experimentation, it was a quality production and had no advertising, and the format made it look like a book, not a magazine. The magazine was printed on a low budget. Lubalin stuck with black and white printing, as well as limiting himself to one or two typefaces. He also only paid a single artist to handle

When Ralph Ginzberg was convicted with obscenity Lubalin said, “I should have gone to jail too.” Herb said and stayed true to how he wanted to devote his life to painting after he retired. He never got to retire. He died and did not get to devote his life to painting. He died when he was 63 years old, May 24, 1981. On October 26, and October 27, his life and the work he did were celebrated at a two-day symposium at the Cooper Union in New York City. It was a free public event, a family reunion, a party, and a book launch. The book was Herb Lubalin, American Graphic Designer, 1918-1981 by Adrian Shaughnessy.

The Great Hall had design students and veteran designers who had made their mark through the decades. Herb Lubalin’s family was there too, his sons Peter and Robbie, and many of his old colleagues and friends, including panelists Bernie Zlotnick, who worked with Lubalin in the 1960s at Sudler & Hennessey. Fay Barrows, Lubalin’s assistant at Sudler & Hennessey. Ad man George Lois. Author and educator Steve Heller. And designer Louise Fili, who in the mid 1970s launched her career at Lubalin, Smith, and Carnase. The panelists spoke about Herb Lubalin and his many works, affectionately sharing memories and