Neville Brody is considered one of the most influential designers in the graphic design industry. Brody grew up in London and started his career in art at the Michenden School where he studied A-level art. A level art is mainly focused on studio work emphasizing observation and analysis of the visual world. After Brody finished at Michenden School he went to Hornsey College of Art in 1975 where he took an art foundation course. Punk rock was one influence on Brody’s work.
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Bands such as The Clash, The Ramones and especially the Sex Pistols had a major effect on London which Brody had used to his advantage by using the same type of hard edged graphics these punk rock bands used on their album covers. Brody’s instructors did not approve of his style of art because it was considered rebellious and went against the mainstream. Brody also had designed posters for student bands at the college. Brody was not just motivated by punk rock but also by pop art and Dadaism, which is based on irrationality and protest.
In the early 1980’s Brody had worked for Fetish Records where he mixed different types of typefaces using geometric shapes, symbols, and images. After Brody finished schooling at Hornsey College he attended London College of Printing from 1977 to 1980 where he studied graphic design before becoming a freelance designer. Most of his freelance work involved designing record sleeves. In 1981 Brody started working for The Face magazine as an art director where he did most of his best typographical work.
In 1988 a book was published of Brody’s work called The Graphic Language of Neville Brody to accompany a retrospective that was being shown at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. In 1991 Brody helped launch Fuse. His plan of action was to prove to people that a computer is merely a tool of communication. The purpose of Fuse magazine was to make it a form of digital medium that would present different typefaces and could be modified with each issue. One piece of famous work from Neville Brody is the movie poster for Oceans 11 and 12.
Brody used contrast with the red lettering and the black images on the white background. Shadows of the images fall into the typography making it a dominating element. Brody has also invented many different types of fonts such as Blur, Times New Modern, Gothic, Pop and Six. Then in 1994 Brody and Fwa Richards co-founded Research Studios for Visual Communications and Design in London. They worked for clients in the publishing and film industry such as The Times Magazine and Paramount Studios.
Neville Brody has recently been named the Head of the Department of Communication Art and Design at the Royal College of Art. Brody has inspired many young artists to explore different aspects of art from typography to using shapes to create an image. Brody has created multiple different types of fonts that are currently being used in magazines and newspapers. Brody has easily been one of the most influential designers over the past few decades.
