Massimo Vignelli’s iconic fold-out pocket map of the New York Subway system. Vignelli, the lead designer for the Unimark International design agency, drew inspiration from George Salomon who produced the first modernist diagram of the New York Subway, Raleigh D’Adamo who won the 1964 Subway Map Competition with his colour-coding scheme, and Harry Beck’s diagram of the London Underground. These ideas paved the way for a simplified schematic for one of the most complex underground transit systems in the world.

Vignelli's diagram was short-lived, being replaced in 1979 by Michael Herz's less schematic map, but it is still considered a masterpiece of 20th century information design.

Printed colour. [USA9663]