Collections

Design:Vignelli is an ongoing exhibition at the Vignelli Center for Design Studies that showcases the iconic work of Massimo and Lelia Vignelli. The two Benetton exhibit galleries are dedicated to exhibiting work from the Vignelli archives, including their industrial and product design, graphic and publication design, corporate identity programs, architectural graphics, exhibition, and interior and furniture design. The archives also feature unique materials related to their design process, such as sketches, prototypes, models, technical plans, correspondence, contracts, mechanicals, photographs, material samples, videos, and digital files.

Visit our blog, archive: Vignelli, to see artifacts from the Massimo and Lelia Vignelli papers as they are unpacked and processed.

In addition to the Massimo and Lelia Vignelli papers, the archives also hold the following collections:

Unimark International records
RitaSue Siegel Candidate records
Michael Bierut posters
Armando Milani posters
Robert Appleton papers
Joe A. Watson posters
Kodak 1939 World's Fair letters
Keith Godard posters and model
Bill Bonnell papers
Milton Glaser posters
Bruno Monguzzi posters
John Massey posters
Product Timecapsule Collection

RIT is also home to the Cary Graphic Arts Collection, one of the country's premier libraries on graphic communication history and practices. It houses some 40,000 volumes and a growing number of manuscripts and correspondence collections.

Although these collections are still being processed and cataloged, the collections are open for research. Please contact Vignelli Center Archivist Jennifer Whitlock to schedule an appointment and discuss your research interests. As collections are processed, finding aids or guides to the collections will be made available online, as well as digital images of the artifacts from the archives.

For faculty who would like to bring their classes to the Vignelli Center, please contact Jennifer Whitlock to discuss curriculum needs and schedule a visit.