By: Steven Heller
Steff Geissbühler’s logos and marks, posters and print are landmarks of American culture. He developed branding and design programs for corporations such as Time Warner Cable, NBC, Voice of America, Merck, Telemundo, Crane & Co, Toledo Museum of Art, National Parks of New York Harbor, Darien Library, and the May Department Stores Companies. He is currently being honored by an exhibition, “Steff Geissbühler – Memorable and Imaginative Work,” at the RIT University Gallery until April 30.
Geissbühler was born in 1942 in Zofingen, Switzerland. He moved to Basel at age eight. He knew he wanted to be a designer from a young age and spent his formative years learning design under Armin Hofmann and Emil Ruder. He began his work at J.R. Geigy, a well-known pharmaceutical company. During his three decades at Chermayeff & Geismar Inc. in New York, Geissbühler served as a partner and principal. Later, he co-founded C&G Partners and is now sole owner of geissbühler:design.
He is presently teaching at SCAD, having previously taught at PCA, Cooper Union, Yale, and SVA. Geissbühler designed architectural graphics for the IBM building in NYC, and wayfinding for the Universities of Pennsylvania and Connecticut. He designed advertising materials for Mobil, Morgan Stanley, the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Philip Morris and Cummins Engines. He has received numerous awards, including the 2005 AIGA Medal. His work has been exhibited widely in various art galleries and prominent museums throughout the world.
