INDIVIDUALISM SQUELCHERS(３)
by
HERB LUBALIN
Now a word to all those board chairmen, presidents, executive v.p.'s, management people of our least creative agencies and industrial complexes.
The creative individual functions poorly in an atmosphere of indecisiveness created by indecisive decision makers who straddle a 3000 mile wide fence.
This is a precarious position for a top executive to be in for any length of time.
It leads to a split personality.
He gives lip service to creativity when talking to creators.
Sells them down the river when confronted by market researchers.
Defends salesmanship at all costs when accosted by account executives and disowns them all when
chastised by an irate client.
His great aim in life is to appeal to every man, woman and child, rich or poor, fat or skinny, republican or democrat, white or black, gentile or jew, in the United States with the same ad.
This top executive marches, everlastingly, down that big, broad, white, safe double line in the middle of the road and gets passed by right and left.
His battle cry is "to hell with Doyle Dane & Bernbach"
The last group of inhibitors are the type casters, a body of men who search for talent, find it, tie it up in a neat little package and stick it in a niche.
These niche-pickers do not understand talent.
Only experience.
Here is my own chronology of experience with them over the past 25 years.
I find it the easiest way to make my point.
In 1941 I was generally accepted as the outstanding designer in America of classified advertising. (Real Estate Ads, 1 column wide by 1 inch deep).
So, I was classified as a classified advertising designer.
I was confined to this small space until 1945 when a courageous design organization hired me, against tradition, to do double-truck Pharmaceutical ads in full color, yet.
I then became a full-color double-truck pharmaceutical designer, an image I still retain today.
However, during this period I became more and more involved with sales promotion.
Magazine ad for Bristol Labs Polycillin
このぺニシリンは、種々の細菌伝染病に効く広範潮の抗生物質です。
I designed direct mail, point of sale material and sales presentations.
So I became known as a sales promotion designer with doubletruck pharmaceutical overtones.
In 1956 I won a gold medal at the New York Art Directors Club show for the best trade ad of the year.
I then became involved up to my ears in trade advertising.
So I was now a trade advertising designer with sales promotional overtones.
But in 1958, I received a gold medal for the best consumer newspaper ad.
I was now up to my eyeballs in consumer advertising.
While the nich-pickers were trying to find a category for me I was asked to help redesign the Saturday Evening Post.
Then Eros, along with various other editorial assignments.
editorial page for Post magszine
私は,泥棒など一度もしたことなんかない.
と、3年間の牢獄生沼を終えた後も、無罪を訴え続けている人がいる。
In 1963 I was awarded a gold medal and 3 distinctive merit awards for editorial excellence.
My banishment from the ranks of advertising design was now a forgone conclusion.
I was now to become a full fledged editorial designer, when 10 and behold, a TV commercial I had been instrumental in creating and producing received a "Cleo" award as the best commercial in the hair preparation field in 1963.
I have subsequently become involved over my head in film. I love the medium and did everything in my power to influence the categorizors to classify me as a film designer and director.
Then they found out that I was spending a good deal of my time on packaging and corporate design.
They now call me a classified, double-truck pharmaceutical, promotionally inclined, trade and consumer advertising, TV and industrial film designer with editorial and corporate overtones.
I call myself Herb Lubalin because that's who I am.
An Interview with Mr. Herb Lubalin INDEX
>>about "Eros" magazine
>>Family and Cooper Union
>>Best friend --- Mr.Louis Dorfsman
>>I love to create advertising. But...
>>about "un-graphic", "non-graphic"
>>"I'm just beginning to do professional work."
interviewed in 1969
