Art into Design - Leo Lionni

"The name Lionni conjures many mental references: "The Family of Man," Swimmy the fish, Century Schoolbook Expanded, exotic flora, Olivetti and more, because the man behind the name has affected our visual "landscape" for almost three generations. He has been a committed teacher, author, critic, editor, painter, sculptor, printmaker, designer, cartoonist and illustrator."
Link to AIGA article"



Leo Lionni was a artist born in 1910 in Holland. He was extremely influenced by many of the classical artists and craftmen during his youth. At 14 he moved to Philidelhpia for a time and then to Italy, where he became embroiled in the Futurist movement. Although he felt his work was more associated with the DeStijl movement and the Bauhaus, FT Marinetti highly praised him for his "aero-dynamic design." It was also during this period he became more involved with graphic design as a field. Eventually he moved to Milan where his art and graphic design became more mingled and then to the United States when Fascism began taking over Italy. In the US, he furthered his art and graphic design work.

At the age of 50, he decided he wanted to do more work for himself rather than for an ad agency or design group. Intending to move to Italy, he accidentally became a children's book author, an area which he pushed boundries and art as well.

"Lionni has left an impressive mark. As an art director at N.W. Ayer, he wedded fine art to applied art. As co-editor of Print, he elevated the level of graphic design criticism. As art director of Fortune, he launched the careers of many formidable practitioners. As a children's book author and artist, he has engaged the minds and hearts of several generations. His own graphic endeavors are enlivened by youthful innocence, sage-like logic and humor. His astute essays on the teaching and practice of graphic design are invaluable additions to the lexicon of the field. Moreover, in word and deed, he has been an unfaltering rationalist, a devout humanist and a passionate artist."












When I read his biography, I knew that I had to learn more about this amazing guy. His creativity and vitality really made a mark in a lot of areas. His work has touched millions of lives and he was talented in so many fields. As a designer / artist myself, I really love seeing different media come together to spawn something totally new and interesting; something that Lionni, with his extensive background and creative spark, did well. I'd highly recommend people to go read his bio and find out more about him. I only wish I could have found more pictures of his work online!