How one student design became an icon of environmentalism: Meet Gary Anderson, designer of the recycling logo
Can a student design award change the world - or at least how people see it? Fifty-five years ago - just months after the first-ever Earth Day - it did exactly that.
In 1970, Gary Anderson was finishing his Master's degree in architecture from the University of Southern California when he saw a poster advertising a design competition. The Container Corporation of America, then the US's largest paper recycler, was sponsoring a contest for art and design students "for the love of the earth". As the internet was not yet a thing, posters were hung on college campuses across the country. Drawing on a myriad of images, from the Möbius strip to Bauhaus and psychedelic art, Gary drew the iconic symbol we all know - and won the competition.
Picture the scene: The 1960's have just come to an end, it is mere months after Woodstock, the Apollo 11 moon landing and the Stonewall Riots. In January of the same year, around 15 million liters of oil spilled into the Pacific Ocean near Santa Barbara, California. This was the impetus for organizing the first Earth Day, which drew 10% of the entire population of the US to take to the streets on 22 April, 1970.
We spoke with Gary Anderson, architect and designer of the iconic symbol, some fifty-five years later.
When you entered the contest, did you have any idea how much of an impact you would make with your design?
When I entered it was not that I thought I would win, but when they told me I had made it to the finals, I was not exactly surprised. I thought I had done a good job and felt like maybe I deserved to win (laughs). The arrogance of youth.
At the time, I didn't pay much attention to the jury members who chose my entry. But I realize now that they were really exceptional designers: Saul Bass (see picture left: North by Northwest film poster, 1959), Herbert Bayer, James Miho, Herbert Pinzke (see picture right: The Society of Typographic Arts, Poster, 1952) and Eliot Noyes (scroll down).
Did you think about royalties or intellectual property back then?
No, I didn't. I remember the rules of entry said something about releasing the design into the public domain, so that was not a surprise. I didn't expect to receive royalties from the design. I did receive the prize of $2,500.
How has thinking about sustainability and the environment changed for designers and architects since the first Earth Day?
We have come a long way. Of course, there is still very much to be done, but so much has changed since then. When people talked about the environment - the world sustainability came later - they mostly meant keeping the environment looking nice. When there was talk about not cutting down as many trees, it was because then you wouldn't have a beautiful wooded landscape anymore. There were not many people back then who made the connection between the environment and sustaining life for humans. When people would change the oil in their car, they would think of nothing of just pouring the used oil down the drain. That's different now. Maybe my recycling symbol did have an impact.
Do you have any advice for young designers and architects at the beginning of their careers who want to make an impact?
Do you have any advice for young designers and architects at the beginning of their careers who want to make an impact?
Be selective yet realistic. Don't limit yourself to things that have the potential to make a large impact. Not everything is going to succeed, but if you focus on those areas you feel are important, you have a better chance of doing some good. Even a small positive impact is better than a negative one!
Be a bit sneaky. In my career, I worked with government agencies planning public buildings. One constant challenge was how to convince people calling the shots about the importance of sustainability. Sometimes it was better to include something obvious in the design, something that would appeal to the decisionmaker's ego, rather than taking a philosophical approach or appealing to the greater good.
Be in the right place at the right time. It's not advice that is really possible to follow, but I do feel that luck is very important to success and impact. Perhaps there are great artists or designers out there right now, but because of circumstances, they will never reach their full potential. If you're lucky enough to get an opportunity, take it.