So tonight a few of us trekked over to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) to see Stefan Sagmeister speak. The place was packed-we were sitting in the aisles. Apparently there were students from several schools that had traveled to Rochester for this talk.
RIT student work outside the Student Center
The Casa de Musica Building
I have to say that Sagmeister is a good public speaker; he kept everyone in the room engaged the entire time, and had some nice moments of comic relief (such as making the sign language interpreter make the sign for “blow job” several times). Sagmeister does some interesting work, doing everything from experimental type to music album designs to branding. He talked about the branding project he did for the Casa de Musica, which was based on the architecture of the building (seen above). The brand is dynamic, allowing itself to be many different colors (there is even a piece of software designed that can take any photo and make the brand into colors from that photo). There’s actually an interesting review of this brand on the blog Brand New (underconsideration.com/brandnew)-check is out if you want to learn more.
Sagmeister also talked about his book, Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far, which uses experimental type to show facts that Sagmeister has learned over the years. He talked about the one installation he did using coins, which was really cool but was confiscated by local police when they found out that someone had stolen some of the coins off the ground.
Overall, I liked hearing Sagmeister talk. I’m glad that I took the time out of my day to hear about what he does and what’s he’s learned.
Posted by: Kate
AIGA in the 'CUSE 