Deborah Sussman, USA

AGI member since 1985

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Deborah Sussman is a pioneer of environmental graphic design. Her passion for the marriage of graphics and the built environment, fuelled by her early career at the Eames Office, led to extensive collaborations with urban planners, architects and multi-disciplinary teams. In 1980 her firm incorporated as Sussman/Prejza & Co., with husband Paul Prejza. Deborah has led the team in designing such notable projects as the ‘look’ of the 1984 Olympics (winner of Time magazine’s award for ‘Best of the Decade’); identity and corporate interiors for Hasbro Inc.; branding and wayfinding systems for Walt Disney Resorts and the cities of Philadelphia and Santa Monica. Honours include: Doctor of Humane Letters, Bard College; medallist, American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA); honorary member, American Institute of Architects (AIA); Fellow, Society of Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD). Her work has been featured in numerous design publications and books, The New York Times, and Time magazine.

Design work by Deborah Sussman


    Deborah Sussman, USA (1985)

    Deborah Sussman was a pioneer of environmental graphic design. Her passion for the marriage of graphics and the built environment, fuelled by her early career at the Eames Office, led...

    Read full biography
    Deborah Sussman, USA (1985)

    Deborah Sussman is a pioneer of environmental graphic design. Her passion for the marriage of graphics and the built environment, fuelled by her early career at the Eames Office, led to extensive collaborations with urban planners, architects and multi-disciplinary teams. In 1980 her firm incorporated as Sussman/Prejza & Co., with husband Paul Prejza. Deborah has led the team in designing such notable projects as the ‘look’ of the 1984 Olympics (winner of Time magazine’s award for ‘Best of the Decade’); identity and corporate interiors for Hasbro Inc.; branding and wayfinding systems for Walt Disney Resorts and the cities of Philadelphia and Santa Monica. Honours include: Doctor of Humane Letters, Bard College; medallist, American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA); honorary member, American Institute of Architects (AIA); Fellow, Society of Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD). Her work has been featured in numerous design publications and books, The New York Times, and Time magazine.

    Exhibitions

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    Deborah Sussman Loves L.A.!

    2013

    Woodbury University’s WUHO Gallery, Los Angeles

    The ‘Deborah Sussman Loves L.A.!’ exhibition was held in 2013–14 at the Woodbury University’s WUHO Gallery in Los Angeles. The show—which focused on work from 1953–84—was organized by Barbara Bestor, in collaboration with Catherine Gudis, Thomas Kracauer, and Shannon Starkey.