Bio

Richard Poulin is a designer, educator, author, and artist living in Southern California. Throughout his career he has focused on a generalist approach to all aspects of design, dividing his time between professional practice and academia. He is a recipient of a research grant in design history from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts and his work is in the permanent design collections of the Denver Museum of Art, Letterform Archive, Library of Congress, and Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).  

As an author, Richard has written several books on graphic design, typography, and design history, which have been translated into eight languages and used by students and practitioners worldwide. His new book, a monograph on the life and work of Rudolph de Harak—Rational Simplicity: Rudolph de Harak: Graphic Designer— was released in 2022 by Thames & Hudson (London).

As an artist, his most recent solo exhibition, entitled “Visual Essays: Elemental Singularities,” was at the Brian Marki Fine Art Gallery in Palm Springs, California. His fine art has also been exhibited throughout the United States and is in the collections of several private collectors.

You can follow his work or contact him on Instagram @richardpoulin or richardpoulin.net.

Artist Statement

Since the mid-1970s, I have been inspired by the work of modernists and avant-garde fine artists such as Kurt Schwitters (German, 1887-1948), Hannah Höch (German, 1889-1979), and Joseph Cornell (American, 1903- 1972). These mixed media collage constructions or “visual narratives” express my life’s passions and pains, joys and losses, and the fundamental aspects of my spirit, soul, and male being. They are comprised of 12 x 12 inch birch plywood panels and utilize chipboard, corrugated cardboard, paper, photographs, printed ephemera, and correspondence collected over the past forty years with the intent that I would use this material for visual storytelling, self-expression, and ultimately, a visual celebration of my life’s experiences and relationships.

www.richardpoulin.net
@richardpoulin