El Lissitzky 1890 – 1941
El Lissitzky was someone I heard about early on back at University who was a Russian Artist and Designer. He worked on a range of materials but the thing that stands out for me is his work in print, namely due to the unique style which draws on design schools like constructivism quite heavily. The work El Lissitzky did was also at a period when designers, in their presentation of work were crossing boundaries as artists, craftsfolk and even philosophers in their interpretation of texts and the ways they chose to present them. Throughout his life El Lissitzky held the belief that design could and should be used to motivate change and this was reflected in his work with the Communist party in Russia.
El Lissitzky himself started as a designer for Jewish childrens books and moved in to teaching within and working for the Soviet Government throughout his life. Even if his work today seems abstract and foreign to many his influence is remarkable in the field of contemporary graphic design. His work if anything is intellient, compelling and something that even today teaches us a massive amount the potentials and scope for design and the role of the designer.
