Raymond Loewy (1893–1986)

Raymond Loewy’s book was first published in 1951 when he and his group of industrial designers were at the pinnacle of their success. It is a combination autobiography, history of the evolution of a professional discipline, treatise on the art of problem definition and solution, and personal commentary on various facets of life. Some of the personal commentary aspects of the book have not aged well but the rest of the book, particularly his descriptions of the growth of the profession of industrial design and his descriptions of problems defined and solved (what some people today would call Six Sigma methods) make the book a worthwhile read for anyone interested in understanding the world of industrial design and its effect on the form and function of manufactured things as they once were and as they are now.

While the “now” of the book is 1951, Loewy’s description of the impact of industrial design on the manufactured world and the timelessness of many of his observations concerning change is such that it is easy for the reader to connect many aspects of the “now” of 1951 to the “now” of the present day. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of design or technology.

See Common Knowledge for an example of the writing style.… (mere)