In April 2017, designers Hamish Smyth and Jesse Reed, the men behind the brilliant reissues of both the NASA Graphics Standards Manual and New York City Transit Authority Graphics Standards Manual, teamed with AIGA and design firm CGH to reissue the 1977 EPA Graphics Standards Manual as a hardcover book. As the designers noted in their Kickstarter, “Like the NASA Graphics Standards Manual, the EPA manual was commissioned as a result of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the ‘Federal Graphics Improvement Program’." In light of the current US presidential administration, we asked Hamish and Jesse if the timing of this project was in concert with Trump’s proposed elimination of the NEA.
"We wouldn’t say this project is an isolated political statement. Yes, the current climate certainly drove the final decision to choose this manual over others, but the bottom line is ‘design for good.’ We want to recognize design's role towards social impact, not only commercial efforts. The NEA and the FGIP were paramount in establishing a better communications programs for 45 Federal agencies, all of which were put in place to serve the citizens of the United States. We think the attention, focus, and clarity found within these manuals are worth preserving for future generations of not only designers, but policy makers as well. Good design equals good communication, and hopefully, good communication equals smart decisions." —Jesse and Hamish
For more information and to support the project, visit Kickstarter.
