LIZ MCLENNAN

HISTORY

Saul Bass (May 8, 1920 — April 25, 1996) was a graphic designer and filmmaker, perhaps best known for his design of film posters and title sequences.

He attended night classes at the Art Students League where he had the fortune of studying under György Kepes, a master of the functional Bauhaus aesthetic.

His first majorly recognized piece was a poster for the 1954 film, Carmen Jones. His design was so well received that he was invited to design the title credits as well.

Saul stepped up the sophistication of movie posters with his distinctive minimal style and he completely revolutionized the role of title credits in films. Originally, credit screens were static, drab, and considered very unimportant to the cinema experience, only there because of an annoying legality.

Bass, however, was committed to injecting life into these graphics, making them as much a part of the cinematic experience as anything else. Introducing his signature “kinetic type,” Bass’ letters dashed and moved across the screen and frequently incorporated images other than text.

Saul Bass is also famous for his logo design.

The average lifespan of a Saul Bass logo is 34 years. Some of his work has yet to be replaced by modern logos, like the designs for Kosé Cosmetics, Kibun, Warner Communications, and Geffen Records. With designs as solid, thoughtful, and timeless as these, they have withstood the test of time and changing cultures.

Logo designer William Haig, who worked with Saul Bass on the Continental Airlines logo, recounted working with Saul in an interview — the first of what Haig calls “credibility-based logo design,”

"I came back with 1500 slides. Saul and I were in a late-night meeting discussing what the Continental look meant and what inference we could make for a new Continental logo design as the beginning of a new image program. I remember Saul saying something like, “If this were Western Airlines, we would just make a ‘western’ looking logo complete with an ‘out west look’ reminiscent of cowboy gear.” But this was Continental, an airline known at the time for its high service image."

This particular logo was ultimately replaced in 1991 but the distinctive look of the original will live on in graphic design history forever.

INFLUENCES & STYLE

György Kepes, a master of the functional Bauhaus aesthetic, was his main influence. He was a Hungarian-born painter, graphic designer, photographer, and educator who taught Saul Bass.

The Bauhaus style is simple, minimalistic, and bold. It features blocky, often overlapping shapes, dark-vibrant colours, and simple backgrounds.

The connection between Bauhaus and Saul's style is obvious; they both use the same colour pallet, blocky shapes, and simple backgrounds.

Just like in Bauhaus, Bass' lines are simple, his icons minimalistic and clean, and feature the same deep-vibrant colour palette.

UNCANNY VALLEY

Something we recognise as "almost, but not quite normal" is known as the uncanny valley.

I've included some example images below.

When done well, the resulting emotional response is one of unease and paranoia.

Mori, M. (n.d.). Hypothesized emotional response of subjects is plotted against anthropomorphism of a robot [Graph]. Tufts. https://sites.tufts.edu/emotiononthebrain/2017/08/16/the-uncanny-valley-and-its-mechanisms/