While I am not a FDC cover collector this signed cover 'delivers' on many levels with me, I am looking forward to its delivery to me in the next week or so.
Raymond Loewy (Nov 5, 1893 – July 14, 1986) was born in France and became known as "The Father of Streamlining" and the "The Father of Industrial Design". By applying his vision of 'beauty through function and simplification' he managed to impact everything from postage stamps to space stations. For me he also represents the confluence of two things I hold dear, Studebakers and USPS.
Loewy started his career just before 1920 with many high fashion magazine illustrations and fashion window designs in NYC. By 1929 he had designed his first streamlined industrial design (Gestetner mimeograph machine) and founded his first firm, Raymond Loewy, William Snaith, Inc.
By the 1930s he was contracted for many companies including Hupp Motor Company and Studebaker. His 1934 Sears Coldspot refrigerator was a large success and was followed quickly with the iconic GG-1 electric locomotive for the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1936.
His association with Studebaker lasted well over 40 years; I have many Studebaker ads touting their association with him from the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. The 1953 Studebaker Starliner, still to this day often raking in the top 10 best car designs ever produced, was an incredible design shift for that time period. Compared to the other 1953 American models, it's 'short deck and long hood' sports car shape would be copied for many years to come by other auto manufacturers. And the 1963-64 Studebaker Avanti was not only notable for its design but also for being one the first production cars in the world to hit 200 mph. And of course the 51 in my avatar also came out of Loewy Studios.
Lowey also enjoyed a close relationship with the USPS. He designed the familiar USPS logo (along with many, many other familiar logos such as Lucky Strikes, Shell, etc.) which of course later made its way to a stamp.
But in 1964 USPS called upon Loewy to handle the rush job of designing the JFK Memorial stamp on the cover shown. The first design from BEP had been rejected in December 1963 and something was needed quickly. Loewy's team of designers at Raymond Loewy, William Snaith, Inc work around the clock to meet the deadline. Jacqueline Kennedy made the final design decision and asked that the stamp color match that of the interior of Air Force One. She probably did not know it at the time but Air Force One was also a Loewy design.
For many years I placed Loewy on a pedestal but in the early 1980s I had the opportunity to met and talk to Bob Bourke. Mr. Bourke was the actual designer of the 1953 Studebaker Starliner and worked at Loewy Studios in South Bend. While always a humble gentlemen it become clear to me that Loewy often was getting the credit for designs that he really did not contribute that much too. After further discovery I found some detractors who felt Loewy was more a PT Barnumesque salesman than a true designer.
But either way Loewy signed material does not come to market very often. The cover shown here is 'to' another famous designer in his own right; Knut Yran. Knut Yran was a 'up-and-coming' Norwegian designer who made a name for himself with a winning design for the 1952 Winter Olympics. By the time this cover was sent to him he had just started working for Phillips; Loewy was also under contract with Phillips in 1964 and I assume that this is how they met. Yran went on to become the head Phillips design group from 1966 to 1980.
USPS also honored Loewy with a stamp as part of its 2011 commemorative 'influential industrial designers of the 20th century' series.
Don
Posted 04/19/2014 3:41 pm
