Into the Fold.

Take a moment to pick up a magazine—for those unsure of the task, magazines are the multitude of books found in Doctor’s office that were left to die—or open one of the Conde Nast conglomeration magazine apps on your phone. Now, flip through the pages. We aren’t looking for the top 10 reasons you are Hodor from Game of Thrones, no. Take note of how the typography interacts with the text. Words may wrap around photos of perfectly presented plates of food or text transforms tirelessly into objects—although this may seem common, there was a point where tying typography and photography together was groundbreaking and revolutionary in the United States.

When Otto Storch began working as an art director in the 1950s it was very common for headline and copy text to be completely segregated from photography and stylish typefaces (Heller). Prior to Otto, art movements such as Dada and The Bauhaus began to incorporate typography into design internationally as they experimented with photomontage and typo photo, respectively. Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, a pivotal instructor for the Bauhaus, sought to bring the two worlds, photography and typography, together (fig 1). This “new visual literature” was a natural progression of graphic design in Moholoy-Nagy’s view (Meggs, Purvis, and Meggs 313–314).

Storch continued the modernistic approach that Moholy-Nagy embodied regarding the marriage of typography and photography in his designs. He was given the reigns of art director for the failing magazine, McCall’s, in order to revitalizes and recapture an audience. Utilizing layouts in which copy, art and typography were inseparable, Storch completely changed the way magazine layout was observed (Meggs, Purvis, and Meggs 384–387).

In the article from a 1961 issue of McCall’s (fig. 2), Storch manipulates the first few lines of text under a photograph of a woman laying down creating the illusion that the body copy supports the woman herself.

Ironically, although Storch was successful in revitalizing the McCall’s magazine by utilizing photography and typography in a new and innovative manor (fig. 3), ultimately enough opposition and the magazine’s desire to become more conservative led to Storch resigning after over a decade of service (Meggs, Purvis, and Meggs 313–314). Storch paved the way for current designers as he created stronger ties between all the content in a layout — being described “as a new ‘visual journalism’” (Triggs).

Modernist designers such as Moholoy-Nagy, Storch and the countless before and after have made a huge impact on the way design is looked at critically and approached as a practice. These artists continually challenged the status quo in regards to how design is both created and consumed—adapting their artwork to respond to social issues or environmental concerns. By responding to up-and-coming concerns the design world has been able to stay relative and vital in responding to the needs of the people. As the design discipline continues to progress, we will continuously see designers who are challenging our current ideas and understandings.

Storch’s experience is very akin to the advancements in technology and design that we experience today. Many designers are brought into the fold to rejuvenate a company by creating a new/updated look, a unique voice or a groundbreaking new way to advertise. The Storches of the design world will embrace new technology and old styles to create something unconventional that the audience will embrace. Storch states that “good art direction does not come from an uncertain person”—a statement that all designers should keep in mind (“Otto Storch”). Although they may be opposed (sometimes even initially), as designers we must remain on the forefront of design techniques and methodologies.