MARK ANDERSON

In the 1980s, Mark Anderson Design changed the face of high-technology communications. From Apple to Xerox, Anderson’s designers introduced high design to what had been a dry, engineering-focused genre.

YOUNG STUDIO, YOUNG TALENT

Back in the ’80s we had begun to specialize in soup-to-nuts design for maverick technology companies. When we convinced Apple that we could do Apple better than anyone, we had to find talent, and fast. That’s when Steve Tolleson showed up. Later, Mitchell Mauk and Earl Gee joined the firm. They didn’t come to us because we had a national reputation: In fact, their work was what got us into Communication Arts.

Steve Tolleson came to us right out of school. He was one of the most courageous designers I’ve ever known, putting design on the level of fine art with great energy.

Mitchell Mauk came about a year later from Art Center, where he studied graphic design. His well-known sense for environmental design developed over time. He always started with a high-level concept, and then figured out how to build it inventively, choosing unusual materials and applying them in unexpected ways.

Earl Gee came to us after Tolleson left from Landor’s branding group. He was a prolific crossover designer—the best we ever had. Even his sketches were beautiful. He was pragmatic too, persevering and diligent until he got it right.

I had no way of knowing how they’d turn out when I hired them. Sure, their talent was obvious from their portfolios, and they had good credentials. We were young, we needed people, they seemed cool, and I hired them.

THE MARKS OF TALENT
I got lucky. All three of them had unbelievable drive. They had greater passion and higher standards than I did—exactly the kind of people you want. It turned out that they had a few other things in common.

They were all aware of their field: who was doing what, and how they were doing it. They also had interests outside design. Steve was an athlete, and Mitchell was into international culture. Earl had the sense of humor. Our wide-ranging conversations made it fun to work together. We laughed a lot. I don’t remember egos or backstabbing, either—another mark of quality.

Steve was our No. 1 graphic designer. He brought integrity and European design to technology at a time when high-tech was trying to reach a mass audience with its first consumer products. His annual report for Apple’s second year was a breakthrough. And he had a way with posters, making artful designs that got us a lot of recognition, which in turn attracted new talent and new clients.

Mitchell came into his own while we worked for Hermann Miller. They had designed a special chair to be used in electronic manufacturing, and wanted a firm that knew technology to promote it. On the strength of Mitchell’s solution, they hired us to rebrand their dealer program from launch through collateral and exposition spaces. Mitchell did that; then Earl Gee designed an internal showroom for them. Over the next five years, we did advertising and branding, showrooms, exhibit spaces, and even some videos.

GROWING THE TALENT
I mention these projects not to brag, but because I always wanted my people to be exposed to the full range of design. I believe that creative people need stimulation, and I never put them in a niche. I wanted them to take part in every aspect of the business, from artwork to presentations and press runs. I believe their later success comes at least in part from having had that broad experience.

We deliberately varied the work for them. One way was to start an assignment by having the whole staff work on it. When the client chose a solution, whoever did it would be the lead designer, whether or not they’d done that kind of work before. Another approach was to find areas people hadn’t had the opportunity to work in, and give them that kind of project. If they said, “I can’t do that, I’ve never done an annual report/exhibition space/ad campaign,” I would say, “You can do it.” I didn’t just challenge them and go away. I was always there, chatting about what they were doing and adding fuel to the fire, pushing it.

SELLING THE WORK
People saw our firm as the one to go to for unique work, so I always chose the most extreme solutions to present. What I valued was the level of art in the work, not what I thought would be easy to sell. If there were three, I showed them equally, because I knew all three had value.

LETTING GO
Steve, Mitchell, and Earl all left to start their own businesses. They may have struggled a bit in the beginning, but we all do. All three have done international-class work since. I’m proud of the fact that I may have had some small influence on that.