As many of you might already know, Lou Dorfsman, director of design and, later, senior VP at CBS for more than 40 years, died last Wednesday at the age of 90. From his NY Times obit:
Mr. Dorfsman’s work became a model for corporate communications, in the marketing discipline now called branding. In 1946, when he joined CBS as art director for its successful radio networks, the company was already a leader in both advertising and the relatively new field of corporate identity. Frank Stanton, then CBS’s president, understood the business value of sophisticated design and had earlier hired William Golden as the overall art director; in 1951 Golden designed the emblematic CBS eye, among the most identifiable logos in the world.
Mr. Dorfsman not only extended Golden’s aesthetic by combining conceptual clarity and provocative visual presentation, but developed his own signature style of graphic design.
Besides being in charge of the look & design for all of CBS, he also played a major role in the network’s headquarters on 52nd and Sixth Avenue in New York, the CBS Building. Along with architect Eero Saarinen, Lou was responsible for all of the “building’s graphics, designating the type, design and spacing for wall clocks, elevator buttons, and elevator inspection stickers.”
One interesting aspect of the building that Lou designed was a 35 ft. wide by 8 1/2 ft. tall wall for the building’s cafeteria, titled “Gastrotypographicalassemblage”. The wall has since been taken down, but there have been recent efforts to restore the wall to its original splendor by the non-profit organization The Center for Design Study. For more information on the wall and its restoration (as well as how you can donate) check the links:
Speak Up: The Wall That Lou Dorfsman Built
Honor the Legacy: Gastrotypographicalassemblage
The Center for Design Study’s Flickr showcases photos of the restoration in progress.