Logo Art By Kohei Miura

Written By Max Gibson

While a name like Herb Lubalin evokes memorable images from his typography work, for many the name Kohei Miura evokes nothing. Virtually unknown to the western world, Kohei Miura gained notoriety within the world of typography for his unique logos and understanding of the Western letterform. Amassing hundreds of logotype designs, Miura’s work captured the essence of the time, while incorporating brand messages through his prolific work. Learning under the tutelage of Herb Lubalin, Miura honed his skills in typography by creating iconic imagery for various campaigns throughout the 60′s and 70′s. Still widely unknown to this day, Miura’s work provides an accurate depiction of the decade’s typography styles, while serving as inspiration for typographers of today.

Initially shunning the art of lettering, Miura begrudgingly took assignments at Light Publicity Inc. in his early years. However, it wasn’t until he was introduced to the work of Herb Lubalin that Miura’s perspective of typography changed, “One day a colleague brought back a poster from America which had the original typography of Herb Lubalin, and we all looked at it together at the studio. Seeing that poster was the turning point in my understanding of lettering. The first time I met Mr. Lubalin, then, was through his work. Mr. Lubalin’s indescribably beautiful typography made a deep impression on me, and from that point on I became more and more absorbed in typography work.” Embracing the time consuming art of typography, Miura’s work celebrates the beauty of hand written lettering while helping to shape the landscape of logo design.