Background
Steven Heller was born on July 7, 1950, in New York City, New York, United States. He is a son of Milton Heller, an auditor for the Air Force, and Bernice Heller, a department stores buyer.
Steven Heller at the 1960s.
209 E 23rd St, New York, NY 10010, United States
Steven Heller at his office at the School of Visual Arts, New York City.
Steven Heller and Lita Talarico, co-founders and co-chairs of SVA's MFA Design program.
Steven Heller lecturing.
(The book written by Steven Heller and Ralph E. Shikes gat...)
The book written by Steven Heller and Ralph E. Shikes gathers satirical sketches by Delacroix, Manet, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec, Picasso, Gris, Rossetti, Crane, Grosz, and Shahn.
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Satire-Caricaturists-Cartoonists-Delacroix/dp/0818001410/?tag=2022091-20
1984
(The book written by Steven Heller and Lisa Talarico descr...)
The book written by Steven Heller and Lisa Talarico describes the duties of illustrators and art directors, offers advice on career planning, and shares the experience and advice of top professionals.
https://www.amazon.com/Design-Career-Practical-Knowledge-Illustrators/dp/0442232632/?tag=2022091-20
1987
(A design compendium by Steven Heller and Seymour Chwast c...)
A design compendium by Steven Heller and Seymour Chwast covers 48 design styles, from Victorian to Post-Modern
https://www.amazon.com/Graphic-Style-Post-Modern-Steven-Heller/dp/0810925885/?tag=2022091-20
1988
(The book written by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson surve...)
The book written by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson surveys how humor is used in such graphic media as book and record jackets, logos, posters, typography, and advertising.
https://www.amazon.com/Graphic-Wit-Art-Humor-Design/dp/0823021610/?tag=2022091-20
1991
(A survey of political protest posters from the 1980s writ...)
A survey of political protest posters from the 1980s written by Steven Heller and Karrie Jacobs
https://www.amazon.com/Angry-Graphics-Protest-Posters-Reagan/dp/0879054697/?tag=2022091-20
1992
(This lavishly illustrated volume by Steven Heller and Lou...)
This lavishly illustrated volume by Steven Heller and Louise Fili offers a unique survey of Italian commercial graphic design during a period of both creative artistic vitality and extreme political turmoil.
https://www.amazon.com/Italian-Art-Deco-Graphic-between/dp/0811802876/?tag=2022091-20
1993
(An information-packed, elegantly designed guide to "what ...)
An information-packed, elegantly designed guide to "what they do and don't teach in school" about making a living as an illustrator by Heller and Teresa Fernandes.
https://www.amazon.com/Business-Illustration-Steven-Heller/dp/0823005453/?tag=2022091-20
1995
(With enticing visuals and a fascinating text by Steven He...)
With enticing visuals and a fascinating text by Steven Heller, James Fraser, and Seymour Chwast, it is the first book to examine an often ignored period of Japanese graphic design.
https://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Modern-Graphic-Design-Between/dp/0811805093/?tag=2022091-20
1996
(A chronological showcase of graphic art throughout the ce...)
A chronological showcase of graphic art throughout the century – from Toulouse Lautrec to Art Chantry – by Steven Heller and Mirko Ilic.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0891349375/?tag=2022091-20
2001
(This priceless teaching tool features more than 70 proven...)
This priceless teaching tool features more than 70 proven-effective programs from the country’s leading graphic design schools.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00795GFRG/?tag=2022091-20
2003
(A highly informative and entertaining introduction to wha...)
A highly informative and entertaining introduction to what art direction is and what art directors do by Steven Heller and Veronique Vienne.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1856696243/?tag=2022091-20
2009
(This visual survey of graphic design styles through the a...)
This visual survey of graphic design styles through the ages by Heller and Chwast is an essential resource for designers, art and design students, and art lovers.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0810997916/?tag=2022091-20
2011
(This book is a complete, introductory guide to various fo...)
This book is a complete, introductory guide to various forms of research and writing in design, and how they explain visuals and can be visualized.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1592538045/?tag=2022091-20
2013
(The book by Steven Heller and Jason Godfrey surveys a uni...)
The book by Steven Heller and Jason Godfrey surveys a unique collection of the most influential magazines devoted to graphic design, advertising, and typography.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1780673361/?tag=2022091-20
2014
(This is the scope of designer Steven Heller’s latest essa...)
This is the scope of designer Steven Heller’s latest essay anthology that covers the spectrum of graphic design and related art and culture.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HDVCQBE/?tag=2022091-20
2017
(The manual offers an in-depth look at the evolution of IB...)
The manual offers an in-depth look at the evolution of IBMs house style from the 1960s to the 1980s, from logotypes, fonts, numerals, and type specimens, to highly detailed information on imprinting binders, signage, packaging, and related materia.
https://www.amazon.com/Ibm-Graphic-Design-Guide-1969/dp/B07B5WFTC9/?tag=2022091-20
2018
critic editor educator journalist author
Steven Heller was born on July 7, 1950, in New York City, New York, United States. He is a son of Milton Heller, an auditor for the Air Force, and Bernice Heller, a department stores buyer.
Steven Heller became interested in politics as a child. At the age of six, he had an idea to convince the habitants of New York City to vote for Adlai Stevenson instead of Dwight Eisenhower. By his teens, long-haired and rail-thin Heller turned even more to the left.
Heller attended McBurney School but left it on his second year because of some adolescent embarrassments. He pursued his studies at the Walden School. While there, he revealed his passion for drawing.
Heller didn’t finish college and had no formal training in design. At the age of seventeen, he attended several New York University lectures on various subjects.
Steven Heller started his career at the age of seventeen when he occupied the post of an art director at the New York Free Press having no qualifications for that job. This time, he was fascinated by political cartooning and conceptual illustration.
In 1974, after spending some time at such periodicals as Interview, Rock, Screw, Rat, and the Evergreen Review, Heller got a job of an art director at the New York Times Op-Ed page focused on political illustration, surrealism, and social comment. During this time, he produced a number of illustration collections, including ‘Artists' Christmas Cards’, ‘Man Bites Man: Two Decades of Satiric Art’, and ‘Jules Feiffer's America’ among others. Three years later, he became an art director of the New York Times Book Review, and at the beginning of the new decade was assigned its senior art director.
This time, he developed an interest in design. The passion led him to the AIGA Journal of Graphic Design where he became an editor. Serving in that capacity, Heller has produced lots of critical and journalistic titles on design. The author is still associated with the publication editing ‘AIGA VOICE: Online Journal of Design’. His editorship and writing for magazines’ columns also include work at such periodicals as Print, Eye, Baseline, and I.D.
Steven Heller has collaborated on lots of design and popular culture books as an author, editor, and compiler with his wife, Louise Fili, Seymour Chwast, Gail Anderson, and other specialists in the field.
He has also applied his rich knowledge and experience lecturing on the history of graphic design at School of Visual Arts, New York City and as an instructor in the Master of Fine Arts Designer as Author Program which he had co-founded in 1997. He currently co-chairs the Program with Lita Talarico. The couple has recently co-founded such MFA programs as the Design Criticism program (2008) and Interaction Design program with Liz Danzico.
On top of that, Steven Heller has organized or curated many art exhibitions, conferences or symposiums, including ‘Art Against War’, ‘The Satiric Image: Painters as Cartoonists and Caricaturists’, ‘The Malik Verlag’, and ‘The Art of Simplicissumus: Germany’s Most Influential Satire Magazine’.
(The manual offers an in-depth look at the evolution of IB...)
2018(This lavishly illustrated volume by Steven Heller and Lou...)
1993(The book written by Steven Heller and Lisa Talarico descr...)
1987(With enticing visuals and a fascinating text by Steven He...)
1996(The book written by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson surve...)
1991(An information-packed, elegantly designed guide to "what ...)
1995(This visual survey of graphic design styles through the a...)
2011(The book by Steven Heller and Jason Godfrey surveys a uni...)
2014(This book is a complete, introductory guide to various fo...)
2013(A highly informative and entertaining introduction to wha...)
2009(This is the scope of designer Steven Heller’s latest essa...)
2017(A chronological showcase of graphic art throughout the ce...)
2001(This priceless teaching tool features more than 70 proven...)
2003(A design compendium by Steven Heller and Seymour Chwast c...)
1988(A survey of political protest posters from the 1980s writ...)
1992(A book is written by Steven Heller and Karen Pomeroy)
1990(A book is written by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson)
1994(The book written by Steven Heller and Ralph E. Shikes gat...)
1984One of the main principles of Steven Heller in his work is the confidence about the designer’s status of a star. In his writings, he tries to do the best of him to support and encourage designers.
Quotations:
"What drove me to write so much and work with so many people was imposter syndrome. I wanted to prove my worth."
"I write about a lot of characters, people, artists, designs from the past. I mean, this is just a throwaway, but I would love to sit down with some of the Russian Constructivists, like Alexander Rodchenko or El Lissitzky, or ever Kurt Schwitters."
"I would be a dog person. I had cats growing up. They are too whiny and needy. It reminds me of my childhood, the worst aspects of it."
"Typefaces are to the written word what different dialects are to different languages."
"I believe that design must be integrally wedded to editorial content. Some people read images, others read words, but most of us read both. So the overall design, art, photography, text, and sometimes even the typography should be, in the best of cases, considered “content.” Hence the art director’s content must complement the editor’s content."
"Belief systems, whether graceful and efficacious, or painful and destructive, are formed in a multitude of ways: modeling; learning models; circumstances; traumas; repetition of events; and suggestions; etc."
Steven Heller is a very enthusiastic, creative, and generous person completely devoted to his work. He is always ready for giving recommendations for a symposium, conference, show, book, publication or graphic organization. He is a real generator of ideas.
Although he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2007, he remains one of the most productive specialists in the field.
Quotes from others about the person
"He’s one of the most influential design thinkers, period – not just as a writer. As a curator, as an art director, and as a creator of design education." Debbie Millman, graphic designer, writer, and educator
Steven Heller married a graphic designer Louise Fili in 1983.