J. Malcolm Grear (1931–2016) Founder Malcolm Grear Designers, Inc
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
391-393 EDDY STREET PROVIDENCE, RI 02903 401.331.2891 FAX 401.331.0230 J. Malcolm Grear (1931–2016) Founder Malcolm Grear Designers, Inc. Professor Emeritus Rhode Island School of Design Malcolm Grear played a vital role as designer and educator in the field of visual communication design for fifty-five years. He taught in the Rhode Island School of Design’s graphic design department from 1960 to 1998, serving as its chairman from 1965 through 1969. He received the prestigious John R. Frazier Award for Excellence in Teaching in 1986 and in 1988 was awarded the Helen M. Danforth Chaired Professorship. In 1989, the Alumni Council selected Mr. Grear for the Honorary Alumnus Award for “...professional achievements as an internationally acclaimed graphic designer (that) brought overwhelming recognition to RISD’s Department of Graphic Design and its graduates.” In 2012, RISD established the Malcolm Grear Endowed Scholarship Fund in honor and recognition of his impact on the many generations of RISD students. Mr. Grear received the Rhode Island Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, “for his accomplishments as an artist and a teacher” in 1969. In 1997, he was selected by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, comprising 190 institutions, to receive the Citation for Distinguished Service in the Visual Arts. Mr. Grear’s work in graphic design has received numerous awards from national and international organizations, including the American Institute of Graphic Arts, the International Center of Typographic Arts, and the Art Society of North America. He lectured at the Federal Design Assembly; the American Institute of Graphic Arts; the American Institute of Architects; the Society of Environmental Graphic Designers; the International Design Conference, Guanajuato, Mexico; the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum; the Institute of Contemporary Art; Yale University; Carpenter Center, Harvard University; and Brown University, among other institutions. He was a member of the Graphic Design Review Panel for Federal Agencies, which includes the National Endowment for the Arts, and served on the Executive Committee for the Rhode Island Committee for the Humanities. Mr. Grear’s work has been published in numerous books, magazines, and journals including: AGI: Graphic Design Since 1950; Contemporary Designers; American Typography Today; Book of American Trademarks; Logo; Signet/Signal/Symbol; Graphis; Architectural Signing and Graphics; Hospitable Design for Healthcare and Senior Communities; American Corporate Identity; World Trademarks; Designing Brand Identity; and The Business of Higher Education. Mr. Grear’s work was featured in the exhibition “Graphic Content” at the Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati. Other institutions that have included his work are: Whitney Museum of American Art; Cooper-Hewitt Museum; and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. The exhibition Malcolm Grear: The Art of Design has traveled to major museums and galleries throughout the US and Canada. Films about Malcolm Grear have been produced by: PBS, in conjunction with Kentucky Educational TV; NBC’s P.M. Magazine; the RISD Historical Archives; and NetWorks 2010. Malcolm Grear’s book Inside/Outside: From the Basics to the Practice of Design, published in 1994, was recognized as one of the 50 best designed books of the year and has been critically acclaimed in numerous reviews. In 2006, the AIGA and New Riders published the second updated edition. WWW.MGREAR.COM 391-393 EDDY STREET PROVIDENCE, RI 02903 401.331.2891 FAX 401.331.0230 J. Malcolm Grear, page 2 Mr. Grear was awarded honorary doctorates and delivered commencement addresses at the Academy of Art of Cincinnati (Doctorate of Communication Design, 1994); Atlanta College of Art (Doctorate in Design, 1996); Minneapolis College of Art (Doctorate in Communication Design, 1997); Rhode Island School of Design (Doctorate of Fine Arts, 1998); and Eastern Kentucky University (Doctorate of Letters, 1998). In 1998 he received the Claiborne Pell Award for Excellence in the Arts, joining such distinguished recipients as Arthur Miller, Steven Sondheim, Toni Morrison, Robert Redford and Maurice Sendak. In 2000 he was named “History Maker of Rhode Island” by the Rhode Island Historical Society. In 2005 he was honored as a “Kentucky Star,” with his name cast in bronze and permanently placed in the sidewalk alongside such honorees as Helen Thomas, Rosemary Clooney, an Loretta Lynn. In 2010 he was inducted into The Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame, in recognition of his contribution to the history and heritage of the state. In 1978 Malcolm Grear Designers designed the seal for the Veterans Administration and in 1980 for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 1984 Malcolm was chosen from among 40 designers to design the image for the Presbyterian Church (USA). Malcolm Grear Designers was selected from 490 national firms to develop the look of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta, including the “Quilt of Leaves,” the hand-held relay torch, the sports pictograms, and the gold, silver, bronze medals. Mr. Grear was professionally involved with many cultural and community organizations and made design contributions to such groups as The Lasker Foundation, The Metropolitan Opera, Boston Foundation for Sight, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation, Earth University, Providence Preservation Society, Rhode Island Historical Society, Community Preparatory School, International Institute of RI, Anthony Quinn Foundation, National Parks Foundation, Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, Audubon Society, Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts, and the Nature Conservancy in RI. Mr. Grear was a member of Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI). He graduated from the Art Academy of Cincinnati. Malcolm Grear Designers, Inc. was founded in 1960. WWW.MGREAR.COM.