The 5th Colors
By Alain Le Quernec

During the recent years, Iran’s graphic design has intruded upon international arenas and now, it is permanently present in all the events and occasions worldwide, in a way that its presence has been inevitable. Making up for the past years’ lack of recognition, Iran’s graphic design is now gaining honors repeatedly.

Iran’s graphic design has been recognized belatedly, since it grew during the fifties, when Morteza Momayez and some other graphic designers gathered together to enter a new view into this experience. This movement started and in spite of the revolution and the war between Iran and Iraq, which disconnected Iran from the rest of the world for a long time, kept on moving.

Today, Iran’s graphic design owes its special position to the activities carried out by Iranian Graphic Designers Society. This Society has been able to introduce the real position, necessity and attraction of graphic design profession to the public during this period of time.

Each new generation of graphic designers in Iran has a larger population than the previous one. In the present situation, three groups of Iranian designers can be differentiated:
1) The early founders and Morteza Momayez who are considered the symbols of Iran’s graphic design.
2) The graphic designers under 40 years old who can be called "young designers". They belong to the group of the innovative ones who are i nterested in new trends.
3) The very young, newly-graduated generation, and familiar with their previous generation whose achievements have roused the youth to follow their footsteps if the situation is suitable.


The 5th color belongs to the second group. Those who will still be called young graphic designers towards the not-very-far future. This group have used the experience and works by Morteza Momayez’s generation, the generation who made an honorable and respectable profession out of graphic design. The young generation’s most important achievement is questioning some current criteria and moving towards innovation, and also their sensitivity and appreciation for new trends in graphic design which has been transformed by the advent of computers and the Internet. Although they consider themselves different from the previous generation, they have maintained a strong Iranian identity. Besides mastering new techniques, they have inherited an original culture which is some thousand years old, powerful and unique in poetry, calligraphy, music, etc.

All the four members of the 5th color belong to this creative generation. Today, they have given credence to whatever we know as values and innovations on Iran’s graphic design and also to previous generation’s works which were hidden due to their country’s insularity. The members of the 5th color are the members of Iranian Graphic Designers Society too, but they have gathered together and are collaborating in a way as if they wanted to be the only selected and professional ones in this Society.

Although the members of the 5th color started their activities with the aim of displaying their works and upgrading their level, they want, in all aspects, to be the holders of the new trends in graphic design, such as holding national exhibitions of Iranian typography and posters, by reliance on their talents. In a struggle to be an official source, they are determined to be a solution to satisfy the graphic designers’ ardent desire, and by means of the friends and connections they have made all over the world, they would like to stage exhibitions.

Undoubtedly, all these initiatives have always been successful. This pride and want towards being the best, could be a paragon for the society of Iranian graphic designers. It is no exaggeration to say that by their active participation in competitions which has won international renown for Iran’s graphic design, they can be considered the messengers of their country in this subject. What is now going on in the field of graphic design in Iran is very exceptional and the result of a strong will and good organization which makes graphic design respectable and attractive for students. The role of the 5th color members in this policy-making is very crucial for the health and survival of Iran’s graphic design today.

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