John Alcorn

photo by Phyllis Alcorn, 1989.

John Alcorn was an American graphic artist and illustrator, working from the 1950s up until his death in 1992. A graduate of Cooper Union, a member of Pushpin Studios, and then an art director at CBS, Alcorn then went on to set up shop as a freelance illustrator, creating his most eyecatching and memorable work. Here are some of my favorites. To view much much more of his work, visit The Art of John Alcorn website.


Editorial illustration, 1969


One of the dozens of book jackets Alcorn produced while working in Florence for the Italian publishing house Rizzoli. This cover is from 1973.


1972.


1973.


1976,


Packaging design for Aramis Perfume, 1982


1989.

Philately Fridays: Germany, 1977

Three-stamp set from Germany, putting a subtle 1977 twist on the art nouveau (Jugendstil) styles of the turn of the 20th century.



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A Glossary of Television Terms

Fantastically-illustrated piece by John Alcorn under the art direction of the legendary Lou Dorfsman for CBS, 1964.



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Philately Fridays: Hungary, 1982

Two stamps from Hungary from a year of competitive recreational activities. 1982 didn't just see Budapest hosting a stamp-worthy Rubik's Cube world championship, but also a stamp-worthy European table tennis championship!





Here's some footage from that Rubik's Cube championship:

Stefan Kanchev

When it comes to logo designers, you really couldn't hope for anyone more creative and prolific than the late, great Stefan Kanchev. During the second half of the 20th Century, he single-handedly put Bulgaria on the world graphic design map, pumping out hundreds and hundreds of logomarks, postage stamps, and other incredibly stylish and effective designs. Here is a collection of some of his best work. These images are from a series of photos from an exhibition of Kanchev's work found on logoblink.com

























Check out more from Stefan Kanchev on So Much Pileup.

And definitely check out much much more from Stefan Kanchev over at stefankanchev.com.

Star Wars promotional designs

I've been a Star Wars fan for as long back as I can remember. The original trilogy shaped a lot of my childhood and creative imagination. There was a great deal of fantastic design work associated with the films and here's a collection of some of it, mostly found online.



Early logo before the more commonly-known yellow on black letters came to be.





Poster for NPR's radio dramatization of Star Wars by illustrator Celia Strain. See more of her work at comicartfans.com



My all-time favorite Star Wars poster, from Israel.



The Italian design is also great. I love the creative liberties taken by the artist.



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Incredible comic book ad showing off a ton of Star Wars toys.



And perhaps the most bizarre of all, this poster with C3PO and R2D2 asking parents to make sure their children have been immunized!

Philately Fridays: Laos, 1983

4 stamps from a 6-stamp set from Laos, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the inaugural hot air balloon flight in Paris, 1783. This illustration style isn't really common in Laos, so I'm wondering if the artist was French. If anyone has any information on these stamps, please send it on over!

Snakes!

Here's an array of snake-based logos for various companies.


Laboratorios Ausonia S.A., a Barcelona-based Pharmaceutical laboratory
designed by José Baqués, 1967


Alafoss wool manufacturers


Delta sales company, designed by B.K.Wiese (Germany)


Municipio della Citta di Bellinzona logo
designed by Udo Elzi for the Bellinzona municipality in Italy, 1975


San Giorgio Impermeabili, a Genova, Italy-based rainwear company
designed by Giulio Confalonieri, 1958


Tutta Milano, Italian tourism organization

Philately Fridays: East Germany, 1979

Another great stamp for kids. Stamp designers are just like Wu-Tang.