Friday, December 17

Gastrotypographicalassemblage



{images from The Center for Design Studies}


In the spirit of the holidays--and all the eating that typically goes along with it--I thought I'd share one of my favorite instances of environmental typography.

Lou Dorfsman was the longtime designer for CBS, and in 1966 his piece Gastrotypographicalassemblage (yes, all one word) was completed and installed in the cafeteria of the broadcaster's headquarters.

His sculpture was a giant mural composed of a myriad of three dimensional wooden typography, spelling out the names of all the various foods featured in the cafeteria. It was exhaustive, typographically playful, and formally brilliant all at the same time.

Above you can see Dorfsman's initial sketches, the entirety of the 35-foot wall, as well as a detail shot of the designer with his work.


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