Alexander Isley, USA (1998)
Alexander Isley is an American designer and educator. He holds a BFA in Environmental Design from NC State University College of Design and a BFA from The Cooper Union in...
Read full biographyAlexander Isley is an American designer and educator. He holds a BFA in Environmental Design from NC State University College of Design and a BFA from The Cooper Union in New York.
Alex first gained recognition in the early 1980s as the senior designer at Tibor Kalman’s influential M&Co. In 1988 he founded his firm New York City.
He was named an inaugural member of “The I. D. 40,” a survey of the country’s leading design innovators. His work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Library of Congress.
Alex is a recipient of the NY Art Directors Club Herb Lubalin Award, the NEA International Design Education Fellowship, and the Federal Design Achievement Award. His work has been honored by AIGA, SEGD, AIA, SPD, the Webby awards, and the Type Directors Club.
He is past president of AIGA/NY and is an AIGA Fellow. In 2014 Alex was awarded the AIGA medal in recognition of his body of work and contributions to the profession.
Publications
Typography: When, Who, How
(1998)
- Freidrich Friedl
Konemann
Graphic Design in America: A Visual Language History
(1989)
- Mildred Friedman
Abrams/Walker Art Center
Who's Who in Graphic Design
(1994)
- Martin Heller
Werd-Verlag
Graphic Wit: The Art of Humor in Design
(1991)
- Steven Heller
Watson Guptill
The Encyclopedia of New York
(1995)
- Kenneth Jackson
Yale University Press
Mixing Messages: Graphic Design in Contemporary Culture
(1996)
- Ellen Lupton
Princeton Architectural Press
U. S. Design: 1975-2000
(2001)
- R. Craig Miller
Prestel-Verlag
Exhibitions
Design Collection
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum
Smithsonian Institution, New York, NY
Library of Congress
Library of Congress, Washington, DC
AIGA Archives
Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado
Alexander Isley Papers: Special Collections Research Center
North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, North Carolina
Herb Lubalin Study Center for Design and Typography
Cooper Union, New York, NY
Education
Instructor
- Undergraduate
- School of Visual Arts (USA)
Designing with Type
Visiting Professor
- Undergraduate
- The Cooper Union (USA)
Exhibit Design
Critic, Lecturer
- Postgraduate
- Yale School of Art (USA)
Visiting Instructor
- Undergraduate
- Rhode Island School of Design (USA)
Agencies
Alexander Isley Inc. Designers
1988 – Present
www.alexanderisley.com