karim rashid

Karim Rashid's work caught my attention in so many different ways. I love how modern and unique his designs are, and the way he uses color to emphasize the style. I am always into very “bright” colors and his work and design uses this as well, to say the least. His work is so fun and exciting and bright and entertaining! I just absolutely love the contemporary style he applies to the design of furniture and lighting and whatever else. His work is amazing!

Karim Rashid was born in 1960 in Cairo, Egyt. He now lives and produces work in New York City. In 1982 he graduated with a Bachelor of Industrial Design Degree with Distinction from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canda. Over the course of his life, Karim has created over 2000 designs, including projects from interiors to fashion to art and to music. His work is in the permanent collections of fourteen museums worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Centre Pompidou in Paris, and he exhibits art in various galleries. Rashid was an associate Professor of Industrial Design for 10 years and is now a frequent guest lecturer at universities and conferences globally.


Below are a few examples of his work that are my favorite and I feel display his work the best:

Hillman Curtis Lecture Series. Wow.

David Carson oh so inspiring.  

Looking at his work I just feel the energy and emotion he put into every piece.  In the interview he said that some people thought it was disrespectful to the writings that he was displaying, but I guarantee the piece got a lot more attention by being displayed like that than

 just a regular “boring” paragraph.  I love the pieces with the very low tracking and how the words just become the image. 

Paula Scher type is image.

In Paula's work it is not just typography, it is image.  From the way the letters are hand drawn to the way it's integrated “in” the space, the words become part of something else, something more.  I loved

 the pieces she did that they showed for the buildings and how the words just fit into the space; by style, by placement.  The Noise Funk pieces were also very intriguing and fun.  She said the typography was designed to look like it made noise, and it did just that.

Milton Glaser serving a purpose.

Milton Glaser's design style is unique.  He uses strong graphics and simple statements to convey his ideas.  One of his most famous pieces is the I Love NY logo. One of my favorites is the illustrative Bob Dylan image I have shown here.  The simple image has so much feeling. Besides being a designer, Glaser teaches.  He teaches to make himself feel good, and to clarify his own objectives.  Artists provide a gift to the culture, so that we all have something in common.