Customer Reviews

Paul Rand: Conversations with Students

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All bibliography notations are from my personal collection of books. Mr. Rand did not collaborate on the book list. Michael Kroeger, MFA

A wonderful paperback essential for any Paul Rand student. And by student, I mean one who appreciates, admires, and learns from one of the greatest designers of the 20th century. This book begins where other Rand books leave off by giving us a personal, endearing (and sometimes cantankerous) perspective of Mr. Rand. Short but, oh so sweet - highly recommended!

I picked this up in part because the little book is so prettily designed, and because it seemed to be a small, easily digestible intro to Paul Rand.

The centerpiece of the book is a couple of Q&A's with Rand on the topic of how to teach graphic design. They present a glimpse of his contentious personality and a few of his ideas.

There are a few brief essays at the end of the book by former students of his, which add a touch of first person reminiscence about the man.

Finally there is a useful list of recommended reading about design, typography and art. It is unclear which books were recommended by Rand in his classes and which were separately compiled by the editor, Michael Kroege, the list seems to contain both.

Well, i think I got what I paid for -- I never stopped thinking the book was pretty. Kroege makes the most of a couple of brief interviews, illuminating points with graphic examples.

I bought this in order to write a paper for college on Paul Rand. It definitely helped. Its small and cheap, and has some of his most important conversations in it. In my research I found that anything in the first half of his career of his was not worth reading. In this book he lays out how he thinks through the process of his designs, with mention to other ideas and authors that we should look at when considering the theory of design. I am in college to be an art teacher, and am majoring in painting, and it helped me a whole lot. Design careers are not the only thing a good education in design is for. I highly recommend it.
A side note: This was published shortly after his death, and was not written BY Paul Rand, but is an extremely important resource anyway, containing much of what he said.

Paul Rand: Conversations with Students is a first-rate entry point to the study of this essential figure in twentieth-century graphic design and education. Michael Kroeger provides readers with an experience in the no-nonsense manner that was inherent to Rand's personality. This simple volume reveals the challenges Rand brought to design problems, the profession, and to design programs and students. The book's significance is multilayered. Readers certainly will benefit directly from the text. Readers will gain even deeper design insight by taking on Rand's challenges to read carefully, think clearly, and to look and see critically. Do this through closer examination of the book's design and its visual examples, follow-up on the many noted figures referenced, and seek out the bibliography entries. In addition, the author and contributors are leaders in graphic design and education, and offer much for further study. I recommend Paul Rand: Conversations with Students for graphic design professionals and students, or anyone interested in visual arts.