[DESIGN IS ONE screens Thursday January 23rd at 8:00 pm at the Cleveland Cinematheque.]
Review by Pamela Zoslov
“If you can't find it, design it” is the motto of Massimo and Lella Vignelli, the charming married Italian-born designers who are the subject of DESIGN IS ONE, a 2012 documentary by Kathy Brew and Robert Guerra.
Even if their names aren't familiar to you, their designs certainly are, including the corporate logos for American Airlines, Bloomingdale's, IBM, Saks, Ford, J.C. Penney, and the streamlined (and controversial) map for the New York City subway system. In addition to graphic design, the Vignellis' seemingly inexhaustible creativity has produced iconic furniture, interior designs, glassware, packaging, tableware, books, jewelry, watches, even the clothing they wear (sleek, black and functional). Many of their ingenious designs are in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
