Lella and Massimo Vignelli: Two Lives, One Vision

Acknowledgments

6 Acknowledgments My life has been enriched by the articulate, intelligent, caring people who have surrounded me as this book evolved. It is difficult to thank individuals because it takes an amazing number of people to turn an idea into a book, and omissions are almost inevitable. In a blatant attempt at inclusiveness, I offer a grateful thank-you to all who shared information and provided support, critique, and encouragement while I was researching and writing this book. I constantly urge my students to reach out to the designers who intrigue them. “It will change your lives,” I tell them. Lella, Massimo, Luca, and Valentina Vignelli—you have certainly changed mine. I thank you for all that you have shared with me over the years, in hours at Massimo’s table, on Luca’s balcony, in Lella’s office. I learned about feelings as well as facts on drives to downtown meetings, on a flight to celebrate the Unimark book in Chicago, around tables in Provence, over many dinners and drinks, through emails and phone calls. You’ve given me another book’s worth of memories. Family and friends learned more about my research than they ever wanted to know. Thank you for your patience with my enthusiasm. Don Kline pushed me to be better, edited my miserably rough drafts, challenged my assumptions, and clarified my thinking; I value your friendship even more than I appreciate your substantial efforts on my behalf. I am grateful to Charles Castilla for your assistance in touching up the many black and white photos for this book. Thank you to Dean Kaufman, for your beautiful photo of the Vignellis on the cover of this book. I can’t look at that image without smiling. It was enriching to be a participant in the RIT Master Designer Workshop in Provence in 2010, gathering information for this book and advancing my design skills under the watchful tutelage of Massimo, Lella, and Armando Milani. Thank you, Cynthia and Armando, for sharing your beautiful home with travelers who quickly bonded over design; that week is long past, but I’m glad that our conversations and friendship have continued. 7 I was fortunate to talk to many people who worked at Vignelli Associates, or Unimark, or both. Michael Donovan, from the earliest years of Vignelli Associates; Jonathan Wajskol, Rocco Piscatello, Michael Bierut, Graham Hanson, and Sharon Singer in the middle periods; Beatriz Cifuentes and Yoshiki Waterhouse in later times; and many others—your stories and assessments of the times, places, and relationships added personality to the facts. Vignelli clients and design professionals on both sides of the Atlantic, more than I can name, were consistently accessible and enlightening. Some I must remember in the past tense. I am thankful for a magical summer afternoon in Beverly, Massachusetts, when Laura Hillyer shared wine and cheese and her purring cat, then dug in a closet to find her commemorative t-shirt from a long-ago birthday celebration for Massimo. On another beautiful day, Mildred Constantine (Connie) refused to let Massimo enter until he phoned birthday wishes to Valentina. He called, then we talked the day away. Connie and Laura were amazing women; I am glad my path briefly crossed theirs. Thanks to the many people at Rochester Institute of Technology who aided my research in the treasure-trove of the Vignelli archives and who continue to make me feel that I have a “home” at the Vignelli Center for Design Studies and at RIT. Roger Remington was gracious about granting access to the archives and Katie Nix assisted me in finding things hidden in the mass of boxes. Nancy Ciolek and David Pankow are two more of RIT’s best who encouraged me in their own quiet ways. Thanks to Ann Stevens for her final round of careful and thoughtful editing, and to Marnie Soom for design assistance. This book is enriched by A. Sue Weisler, who shared her wonderful documentary photos of the Vignelli Center. And, finally, special appreciation to Molly Q. Cort. This book in your hands shows Molly’s wizardry at assembling a team and managing the book’s production process. I am the author, but I couldn’t have written this book without all of you. Lella and Massimo Vignelli, c.1980 Our ethics demand the best from us, in order for us to give the best in return. Design is an encompassing profession, not...