As a part of San Francisco Design Week, SEGD San Francisco and AIGA San Francisco are joining together for a really exciting event!

As a part of San Francisco Design Week, please join the SEGD San Francisco chapter and AIGA San Francisco Thursday June 8th, 2023 from 6-9pm for a special evening with Richard Poulin discussing his new book, Rational Simplicity: Rudolph de Harak, Graphic Designer.

Richard is an SEGD fellow and award-winning designer, educator, author, and artist. His career spans forty years in graphic, environmental, interior, and exhibition design where he divides his time between professional practice and academia. In his new book, Richard celebrates his mentor and unsung hero of mid-century modern design through featuring images of his work along with rarely shared collages, paintings, and remembrances from friends, family, students, and colleagues. Inspired by modernism, Rudolph de Harak was one of the most influential American graphic design pioneers. His design work included everything from album covers, book jackets, and branding to furniture, exhibitions, and museums, often incorporating innovative and experimental photographic techniques and exploring abstraction, geometry, and color. With an early career beginning in Los Angeles to working as a design consultant and educator in New York City, de Harak’s clients include The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Columbia Records, Esquire magazine, McGraw-Hill Publishing, and the Cummins Engine Company, among many others. Rational Simplicity: Rudolph de Harak, Graphic Designer is the first publication to document de Harak’s career.

“Rudy fully adopted the philosophy behind [Modernism] and accepted the idea that design could change the world. In many ways, Rudy was more like an architect than a graphic designer. His feeling for and understanding of materials, recognizing what they could do and how they could be joined, greatly absorbed his interest.” —Tom Geismar, founding partner of Chermayeff & Geismar, in the book’s Introduction

This event will take place at the Haworth Showroom in The Mills Building located at 220 Bush Street, Suite 975, approximately 2 blocks from Montgomery BART Station. Please use the entrance at 220 Bush Street to access the building. All other entrances will be locked at the time of the event. If you require an accessible ramp to enter the building, please let us know ahead of time at sf-chapter@segd.org and we will happily accommodate you.

Parking is not available in the building, however there are many garages and street parking available in the area.

*Please arrive by 6:45pm to attend this event due to building security. The book will be available for purchase at the event. Light snacks and refreshments will be served.

We would like to thank the Haworth San Francisco Showroom for generously hosting us for this event!

Registration for SEGD and AIGA members is free through the link below!

We are also offering an opportunity to pre-order Richard's book with a 15% discount off list price, available for pick up at the event.

Pre-orders will close on Tuesday, May 30. You must be present at the event to receive your book. Register and pre-order here.