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Summary |
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| Creator: | Piening, M. Peter. |
| Title: | M. Peter Piening Papers |
| Dates: | 1964-1968 |
| Size: | 2 linear feet |
| Abstract: | Materials related to Syracuse University Professor M. Peter Piening's work as a graphic designer |
| Language: | English |
| Repository: |
University Archives, Special Collections Research Center Syracuse University Libraries 222 Waverly Ave., Suite 600 Syracuse, NY 13244-2010 https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center/university-archives |
Biography
M. Peter Piening (1908-1977) was a German American graphic designer and professor of advertising design and director of the Design Center at Syracuse University.
Piening was born in Grabow, Germany. He began his education at a private school in Italy, studied at the Jesuit school of Kloster Ettal in Bavaria, and attended the German Stettin Gymnasium, where he graduated in 1926. He obtained his PhD in philosophy from the University of Berlin in 1931.
Piening spent his early career freelancing as an illustrator and artist for various publishing companies, eventually settling in Paris to work for Conde-Nast's French publication of Vogue. In 1934 he moved to the United States to work in Conde-Nast's New York City office. For the next two decades, Piening worked for many important advertising agencies and magazine publishers, including the N. W. Ayer and J. Walter Thompson agencies and Life and Fortune magazines. As art director for Life in the 1930s and for Fortune in the 1940s, Piening completely redesigned the layout of each magazine. He also redesigned the layouts for thirty-four other major American magazines, including Town & Country and Cosmopolitan.
Through his design work, Piening had a great impact on the American public, although the millions who encountered his work most likely never knew his name. Between 1934 and 1964, Piening designed over sixty logos and trademarks for internationally known products and companies. His most widely recognized logo may have been the three interlocking rings of Ballantine beer. Piening's other trademark designs include the Lincoln Zephyr, Syracuse China, the National Housing Center, and several Syracuse University programs including the Maxwell School. All of Piening's designs are marked by simple, clean lines and basic shapes, such as circles and squares. In 1964 Syracuse University published Trademarks and Symbols Designed by M. Peter Piening, a book containing a few of Piening's most famous designs. In a forward to this book, Chancellor William Tolley wrote that Piening was "clearly one of the world's most outstanding graphic designers."
Along with his personal career, Piening also devoted time to teaching future generations of graphic artists. While in New York City, Piening taught at the Art Students' League and in the adult education program at New York University. Syracuse University hired him in 1958 as a professor of advertising design at the School of Art. Under Piening's direction, the design department grew to include general illustration and fashion illustration. Piening was also the director of the Syracuse University Design Center, developed in the early 1960s. In the Design Center, he produced all of the graphics for University publications. Students worked alongside Piening, under whose direction they received invaluable hands-on experience in graphic and logo design. He had a great impact on the advertising design program; he helped it to develop an international reputation, and the students who graduated were highly sought after by advertising agencies and publishing companies across the country. Piening retired from Syracuse University in 1973.
Scope and Content Note
The M. Peter Piening Papers contains four portfolios of prints made by Piening to illustrate the Annual Report and Highlights of Research for the Syracuse University Research Institute. Also included in the collection is Trademarks and Symbols Designed by M. Peter Piening, published by Syracuse University.
Restrictions
Access Restrictions
Please note that the collection is housed off-site, and advance notice is required to allow time to have the materials brought to the Reading Room on campus.
Use Restrictions
Written permission must be obtained from the Syracuse University Archives and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.
Related Material
Additional information about M. Peter Piening can be found in the Syracuse University Clipping Files. The SU Art Galleries has several prints and drawings by M. Peter Piening in their collection. You may visit their website for additional details.
Selected Search Terms
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Subjects
Types of material
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
M. Peter Piening Papers,
University Archives,
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries
Acquisition Information
Gifts from the University Library in 1965 and Erik Hemmingsen in 1994. Original source of 2005 donation unknown.
Processing Information
The materials have been placed in an acid-free folder and box.
Finding Aid Information
Created by: Steffi Chappell
Date: 2014
Revision history: November 2024 - Materials rehoused and stylistic changes made (HL).
Arrangement
Materials have been arranged alphabetically, with some items arranged chronologically where appropriate.