Rhetorical Analysis: Next Inc.

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Next Inc. was a computer company founded by the one of the creators of the Apple computer, Steve Jobs in 1985. The company’s main focus was higher education and business markets. In 1986 Jobs hired Rand to develop the logo for the computer company. When Rand received approval from IBM—where he was still a design consultant—Jobs paid Rand the money to design a project that was not completely public. He received $100,000 to do it (Eckstein). Rand himself knew nothing about the project except for the fact that the next computer was a black cube. Rand set to work (Heller). He made a one hundred page brochure that analyzed different takes on the new brand. He also incorporated an exact angle for the shape of the logo: twenty-eight degrees. Rand …show more content…

Tipped at a jaunty angle, it brims with the informality, friendliness, and spontaneity of a Christmas seal and the authority of a rubber stamp…the unconventional yet dignified array of colors—vermillion against cerise and green, and yellow against black…is designed to appeal to a youthful audience and to add a sparkling, jewel-like touch to paper, package, or machine…In itself a decorative and self-contained device the logo does not depend on extraneous embellishment… (Heller). The logo Rand did for NeXT was the only version the company had until NeXT merged with Apple in 1997, shortly after Rand died from cancer. In a way, his design was the only successful logo a company ever had; they did not change it. His influence is the only influence for this particular logo. It is one of a kind. “Design is the method of putting form and content together. Design, just as art, has multiple definitions; there is no single definition. Design can be art. Design can be aesthetics. Design is so simple, that's why it is so complicated”. Paul Rand was single-handedly responsible for bringing class, elegance and style to corporate logos, books and posters. Although more than the majority of the versions of his logos have been updated, his influence and style is still there and his legacy will live

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