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| Society of Graphic Designers of New England | |
|---|---|
| Name | Society of Graphic Designers of New England |
| Formation | 20th century |
| Type | Professional association |
| Headquarters | New England |
| Region served | Connecticut; Maine; Massachusetts; New Hampshire; Rhode Island; Vermont |
Society of Graphic Designers of New England is a regional professional association for visual communication practitioners in New England that fosters professional development, networking, and standards of practice. Founded amid postwar design professionalization trends, the organization has interacted with institutions such as the Cooper Union, Museum of Modern Art, Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and School of Visual Arts through exhibitions, juried competitions, and educational partnerships. Its membership has included designers affiliated with firms like Pentagram, Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv, Paula Scher, Herb Lubalin, and agencies connected to Boston Globe and WGBH.
The society emerged during a period shaped by movements represented by Bauhaus, Swiss Style, International Typographic Style, AIGA, and the postwar expansion of design education at Carnegie Mellon University, Rhode Island School of Design, Parsons School of Design, and Pratt Institute. Early chapters collaborated with cultural institutions such as the Peabody Essex Museum, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, New England Conservatory, and municipal design initiatives in Boston, Providence, Rhode Island, and Hartford, Connecticut. Over decades the organization hosted jurors and lecturers drawn from figures associated with Herb Lubalin, Milton Glaser, Massimo Vignelli, Lella Vignelli, Saul Bass, Paul Rand, Susan Kare, Michael Bierut, Tobias Frere-Jones, and Ellen Lupton. It responded to technological shifts exemplified by events at Apple Inc., Adobe Systems, Avid Technology, and Microsoft by adapting programming for digital typography, interactive media, and web standards promoted by groups like the World Wide Web Consortium.
The society's stated mission aligns with advocacy efforts seen in organizations such as AIGA, ICOGRADA, Alliance Graphique Internationale, and The Type Directors Club: to advance professional standards, ethical practice, and public appreciation for graphic design. Programming has included exhibitions curated in partnership with Cooper-Hewitt, lectures featuring practitioners from Pentagram, workshops led by faculty from Rhode Island School of Design and Yale School of Art, and collaborative projects with municipal arts agencies in Boston and Providence, Rhode Island. Activities also mirror producer networks like Design Week, SXSW Interactive, TypeCon, HOW Design Live, and OFFF Festival by offering portfolio reviews, studio visits, mentorship programs, and pro bono service initiatives similar to campaigns by Creative Commons and Public Design Commission of the City of New York.
Membership categories reflect practices seen in AIGA and professional bodies such as Royal Society of Arts, with tiers for students enrolled at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Keene State College, emerging professionals, independent studios, and corporate members including agencies like Hill Holiday and Arnold Worldwide. Members often come from contexts including editorial design at The Atlantic, branding work for Harvard University, wayfinding projects for Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and packaging design for firms such as Polaroid Corporation and New Balance. The society has offered student scholarships comparable to awards by Type Directors Club, internship placement services similar to Behance, and continuing-education credits paralleling professional development programs at Columbia University.
Governance follows a volunteer board model comparable to AIGA, Alliance Graphique Internationale, and Society of Illustrators, with elected officers, committees, and regional chapter coordinators operating across Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Strategic partnerships have been formed with institutions such as MIT Media Lab, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Brown University, and municipal cultural offices. Financial management and nonprofit compliance reflect practices relating to foundations like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and reporting standards observed by organizations such as National Endowment for the Arts.
The society administers juried competitions and honors that parallel recognition programs by AIGA, Type Directors Club, D&AD, The One Club for Creativity, and Prix Ars Electronica. Past awards have acknowledged work in identity design, typography, publication design, environmental graphics, and interactive media, judged by panels including representatives from Pentagram, Sagmeister & Walsh, IDEO, Fjord, and editorial designers from The New Yorker and Wired (magazine). Award ceremonies and exhibitions have been staged at venues like Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Institute of Contemporary Art (Boston), and university galleries.
Annual events align with formats seen at Design Week, HOW Design Live, SXSW, and TypeCon, including symposiums on typography, design ethics forums, portfolio reviews, student shows, and regional design fairs. Notable guest speakers have included designers and thinkers such as Paula Scher, Michael Bierut, Massimo Vignelli, Ellen Lupton, Debbie Millman, and technologists from Adobe Systems and Apple Inc.. Collaborations with festivals like Boston Design Week, Portland Design Festival, and conferences at Harvard University and MIT extend outreach to broader creative industries.
The society publishes newsletters, exhibition catalogs, and resource guides similar to publications by Eye (journal), Design Observer, Communication Arts, and Print (magazine). Resources provided to members include style guides for branding, typography primers referencing works by Jan Tschichold, Eric Gill, Paul Rand, and Massimo Vignelli, and online repositories that cite standards from W3C and accessibility recommendations aligned with World Health Organization guidelines for inclusive communication. Archives and special collections have been developed in partnership with institutions such as Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Library of Congress, and university libraries.
Category:Professional associations in the United States Category:Graphic design organizations Category:Arts organizations based in New England