Graphic Standards Manual Earns Top Kickstarter Title

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Wayfinding fans—and New York City enthusiasts of all kinds—are no doubt glad to hear the complete 1970 NYC Transit Authority Graphics Standards Manual is being re-issued. The standards file, created to standardize signage in the New York subway system, has just earned its place as the most-funded graphic design campaign on Kickstarter. Originally released in 1970 and designed by Unimark, the manual became the gold standard for modern design that clearly conveyed ideas and, more importantly, people through the transit system. In a time when there were no wayfinding standards (was it even referred to as “wayfinding?”) and it wasn’t unusual for transit users to encounter hand-scrawled directions, creators Massimo Vignelli and Bob Noorda brought order to commuters and tourists around New York City.

The Kickstarter campaign was successfully funded with over $800,000 and will deliver a painstakingly reproduced re-issue of the manual. Each page has been scanned in high resolution to ensure faithful reproduction of each piece of signage, each callout, and every bit of typography. Though the original came in a 3-ring binder, the 364-page re-issue will have a sewn binding and a cloth wrap hardcover, measuring 13.5″ x 13.5″ and weighing in at 7 pounds! Very little has been done to the scanned pages, apart from cleaning up stray marks, leaving the original publication’s authenticity intact. Additionally, the faithfully-reproduced pages will occupy only the right-hand pages, in keeping with its humble beginnings as a ring-bound publication.

Unfortunately, the only way to get one is to have been a backer, or know someone who is. The creators—who officially licensed the product with the MTA’s blessing—say the re-issue will not be available after this Kickstarter campaign is fulfilled.