Design Of The Times

A celebrated graphic designer looks back at a lifetime of ground breaking work, from brands to bands to burgers.

- Johnny Davis

There’s a running joke among the partners at Pentagram, the celebrated design agency, sparked by a recent AGM, where they all piled into a bus. “We’re being driven up a mountain and it’s very bendy,” recalls Angus Hyland, when we meet at its London HQ. “When we get to the top someone said, ‘I imagined the headlines: Fatal Road Crash: Paula Scher, and others…’.”

Pentagram designs architecture and interiors, books, branding and corporate ‘identities’, films, products, posters and websites, and has five international offices, including London and New York. It is the world’s largest independent design consultancy and may be unique. By its own admission it was established by “three hippies” and remains owned and run by 21 partners. They have equal say. There is no CEO, CFO or COO. Profits are shared equally. They have designed London taxis, Paracetamol packaging for Boots, The Guardian and logos for Claridge’s and The Savoy. It turns 50 in 2022.

Yet while all partners are equal, some partners are more equal than others. Paula Scher became its first female partner in 1991 and has been described as “the most influential woman graphic designer on the planet”. At 71, she is about to complete what is arguably her most successful year, at least in terms of recognition. Last June, she was honoured as a fellow by the Society of Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD). In October, she received the Pratt Institute Legends Award, which celebrates “individuals… whose works have helped shape the cultural landscape”. In November, she headlined Design Manchester. She also had a show in Netflix’s series, Abstract: The Art of Design.

“She’s the first lady of design,” Hyland says. “She’s a force of nature with an amazing, diverse portfolio. And she keeps doing amazing work.”