Design Pioneer: Archie Boston
There are so few minorities in Graphic Design, and even fewer African Americans. So, I'm excited that I learned about Archie Boston, named by Graphic Design USA as one of 35 Graphic Design pioneers. He's the first African American recipient of AIGA's prestigious Fellows Award, was President of the Art Director's Club of Los Angeles, and was chair of the Visual Communications Design program at California State University-Long Beach. He also manages his own Graphic Design firm, Archie Boston Graphic Design, which has been operating for over 30 years. In 2002, he published a book he had written called Fly In The Buttermilk: Memoirs of an African American in Advertising, Design, & Design Education, an account of his experiences as a minority in the creative industry.
An excerpt of his interview with Rachel Elnar is below, but you can read the full interview on the AIGA Los Angeles website.
Why did you become a graphic designer?
I became a graphic designer because I realized in art school that I
would have a difficult time trying to become a fine artist. I used to
love to draw and paint during my first year at Chouinard Art Institute,
now Cal Arts. My older brother Brad, went to Chouinard for 2 years
before I started there. He got a job at Advertising Designers, Inc. in
1961, when I started college. I wanted to be just like him, so I later
decided I wanted to become a graphic designer, and an art director.
With those two titles, I thought I could switch between working in an
ad agency as well as a design studio. The more versatile one becomes,
the better the job opportunities.
How did you get involved with AIGA? Why do you stay involved?
I initially was a member of the Los Angeles Art Directors Club
starting in 1963. Don Weller invited me to design the annual awards
exhibition in the Equitable Building. Then, I became a board member and
serves in various offices until I was elected President in 1976. I was
also elected president again in 1982. In that same year, I became a
tenured Professor at California State University Long Beach. Around
1992, the AIGA/LA chapter was founded. A few years later, the Art
Directors Club of Los Angeles merged into the AIGA/LA chapter. I went
down with a sinking ship until another rescued me.
I stayed involved in AIGA on the Education Committee because I wanted to help students with their portfolios, internship, and interact with graphic designers that strive for design excellence. AIGA is an organization where I could network, stay current on the local gossip, and also socialize with my former students.
In your opinion, how has design shaped Los Angeles?
In the early days there were only a few designers I admired. Those
designers were the ones I interviewed in my documentaries, but there
were other local designers I also respected, and did not interview such
as: Deborah Sussman, Rod Dyer, Michael Salisbury, George Osaki, Bill
Brown, Bradford Boston, Roland Young, Hy Yablonka, John Miyauchi, Tony
Heller, Wayne Hunt, Dan Lennon, John Anselmo, John Casado, Tony
Hollander, Charlie White, John Clark and Mikio Osaki.
These, and the 20 designers I interviewed, help shaped design in Los Angeles. They were involved in entertainment, the aerospace industry, and the emerging automotive industry. These designers cared about getting rid of visual pollution by designing great logos, annual reports, brochures, advertising, and architectural signage. These designers also taught at Art Center College of Design, Otis Art Institute, UCLA, Chouinard Art Institute, and the state universities, passing on their knowledge of good design to the next generation.
If you weren’t practicing design, what would you be doing?
I think the answer is obvious, I would teach design. I have been
doing that for over 30 years. I have been blessed because I have
maintained my own design office, and was given the opportunity to
become an author. However, I think I would have become a doctor, or
scientist, because I have always had a thirst for knowledge, and
enjoyed intellectual challenges. When I was young, I thought that those
two professions were more prestigious. Deep down inside, I knew I had
to followed my natural ability and passion, which was and still is
design.
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