A N U N R E S O LV E D P R E S E N C E , T H E I N TA N G I B L E L I G H T

APRIL GREIMAN

T R A N S - M E D I A A R T I S T:
APRIL GREIMAN
Greiman was born into the baby

boom in New York to a very

supportive family who encouraged
her curiosities as a child.
She pursued a BFA in Graphic

Design with a minor in Ceramics at

KCAI. Afterwards, she was
encouraged to study at the Basel
School of Design where her studio
practice developed under the
guidance of Armin Hofmann and
Wolfgang Weingart.

Born to a creative family that encouraged her creative spirit; father was a wanderer/explorer who embraced curiosities, her mother a calm presence, who would invite Greiman to dance with her professionally from time to time, as
well as her Aunt Kitty, who is an accomplished dancer with the Ziegfeld Follies.

Studied at KCAI and then at the Basel School of Design in Switzerland. Studied formal Swiss design but was influenced by Weingarts experimentation in breaking the grid. Had a solid background in the International Style before
she began her experiments her education here would shape her career. Since there was a language barrier within the school, the professors would demonstrate in silence and leave the students to explore their design.

While most processes occur at an invisible or microscopic level, the desert

reveals its evolution in its very existence. I felt as if, for the first time, my
eyes were wide open to the process of evolution, to growth, to change.
APRIL GREIMAN

Read quote

go further into her life after Europe, went to LA where a friend, Jayme Odgers, dragged her to the desert for photos; it was her experience of the sublime and the desert that will also stay with her for the rest of her life.

She heads Made In Space Inc. (design firm)

uses inexpensive materials like Kodak cameras and 8mm video

Greiman, April. Does It Make Sense. Issue #133 of Design Quarterly. 1986

Design must seduce, shape, and perhaps more importantly, evoke an emotional response.

I think Greiman fully expressed that in this piece. This was a magazine spread that can fold out to the size of a proper poster of 3 x 6. Greiman put this poster in an article that highlighted her style as a digital artist that followed the New Wave

design of Weingart. This was the worlds true introduction to April Greiman her work had been circulated in the design world but this was Greiman declaring her art practice and philosophy to the design world, especially with her innovative use
of the Macintosh computer (it took the art/design world by storm).

Combines traditional design tools with low resolution image making.

N E W WAV E D E S I G N
April Greiman is heralded as one

of the pioneers of digital design

and embracing technology and
the computer as an extension of
the hand in design.
Typical characteristics of the style

are: inconsistent letter spacing

within a sentence/word, varying
type weights, type set at nonright angles.

New Wave Design, dubbed Punk Swiss Design, was a response to the International Style. According to some people, New Wave made Punk design more palatable for the masses. New Wave rejects the grid and structure of the
International Typographic Style and embraces color and expression. Typical characteristics of the style are: inconsistent letter spacing, varying type weights, type set at non-right angles.

It stretches the limits of legibility and was influenced by Post-modern language theory (in which meanings are never set and are reliant on the culture in which the set of signifiers were created nothing is universal) That could be why
Greimans work focuses a lot on an other non-resolved state. (such as her Drive By Shooting series)

Greimans work heavily makes use of the collage aesthetic and breaking the grid. Under Weingarts instruction, Greiman experimented in breaking the grid and structured hierarchy as well as using text and image to evoke emotions
within the viewer. This style is reminiscent of the Dada period of art where fine art was really challenged.

These are more examples of her work Greiman paved the way for digital design.

19th Amendment Commemorative Stamp using cool colors

Seeing is a kind of thinking, an instantaneous synthesis from a chaos of

simultaneous visual impressions a coherent whole, a single perception,
a unique observation.
APRIL GREIMAN

This is a quote by Greiman about her Drive By Shooting (2006) collection. It really encapsulates, I think, Greimans philosophy and approach to design in which the imagery is layered, ever-altering, and the boundary between what
is said/not said is shown. Greimans approach is to break down the structure and present a chaos in her design, one in which the viewer has to explore and understand. That doesnt mean its incomprehensible design, simply an
expressionistic design. It does make one feel and force the viewer to take a new perspective on the work and on design itself. This is probably one of the reasons Greiman is so innovative of a designer.

April Greimans Drive By Shooting (2006) series where she wanted explore how photography and cameras change the perspective of the material world. What the human eye sees is altered by the translation of light and volume into
bits and bytes. Material objects lose their presence while intangible things such as light and color take up volume, presence, and attention.

I like to step into areas where I am afraid. Fear is a

sign that I am going in the right direction.

APRIL GREIMAN

I feel like this is me, because Greimans work scares me. I have honestly never attempted anything like this in my entire art career.

My photos of Vanderslice takes inspiration from Greimans Drive By Shooting where she experimented with motion blur and exposures to both give presence and take it away in her composition.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Lutz, Rebecca. "Designer Spotlight: April Greiman, The Queen of Chance - Rebecca Lutz." Rebecca Lutz. 2014.

Accessed March 03, 2016. http://rebeccalutz.com/april-greiman/.

Smith, Josh. "Idsgn (a Design Blog)." Design Discussions: April Greiman on Technology:. September 10, 2009.

Accessed March 03, 2016. http://idsgn.org/posts/design-discussions-april-greiman-on-technology/.

AIGA. "April Greiman." AIGA. 1998. Accessed March 03, 2016. http://www.aiga.org/medalist-aprilgreiman/.
"New Wave (Design)." Wikipedia. Accessed March 03, 2016. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Wave_(design).
"April Greiman : Design Is History." April Greiman : Design Is History. Accessed March 03, 2016. http://

www.designishistory.com/1980/april-greiman/.
Greiman, April. "Drive-By Shooting." April Greiman. Accessed March 03, 2016. http://aprilgreiman.com/?

page=drive-byshooting.