Logos and Graphics at The WSJ

Here are some logos and graphics from my collection of non hedcut images that I produced while at my “day job” at The Wall Street Journal.I used to think it was really cool to have a salaried position with a big company where my principal task was to draw pictures all day! The health insurance package that came with it was a very nice bonus I wish I had today, Dear Reader, let me tell you…Back before the Journal started running lots of photographs, all was black & white and graphic. I miss that, and I know lots of other people do, too. So, we in the Art Department would get assignments for logos and such to embellish the columns with. Here are a handful of those…A perennial subject: Cutting the Red Tape. Nobody likes that stuff, and the topic was very hot with the anti-regulation folks.Kind of speaks for itself… getting the broken effect was important to communicate the emotion involved.I always thought this was an elegant design— very simple and direct.The other road taken.When things go wrong at the plant!I enjoyed working on this one. It was for the Arts page, as I recall, in an article showcasing Holiday book offerings. I ended up buying that book— it was on the History of Writing, and this is a re-drawing of a detail from it. I presume this letter acted as a typographical lead-in for the story.That’s it for this week. Next time, we leave the Journal for more adventurous illustrations. Hope you’ll catch up with me then…