Deborah Sussman

Deborah was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1931. She was a graphic designer and environmental designer. Throughout Deborah’s life she did many great things that have made her a design icon. She was a groundbreaking Los Angeles designer and was one of the primary creators of the cross between architecture and large-scale signage known as supergraphics. Deborah was an upbeat and feisty woman who found joy in integrating different types of design to create something unique and meaningful.

            She first realized she wanted to be a designer in summer school at Black Mountain College in 1948, where she was exposed to visual art through her talented professors. She later attended Bart College at Annandale-on-Hudson in New York and majored in painting and acting. It wasn’t until she went to the Institute of Design in Chicago that she majored in graphic design. After she finished college in 1953, she was invited to join the distinguished office of designers Charles and Ray Eames in Venice, CA. During her time with the Eames she did many great things, she designed showrooms, print ads and worked on revolutionary museum exhibits.

            Sussman later decided to leave the Eames to open up her own company. In 1972 she met Paul Prejza, an architect and urban planner. They were married that same year and he become a member of her company, which was then called Sussman/Prejza & Company. They were known by most people to have a unique style of design by using vibrant colors and creating spaces that were unique and stood out among the crowd.

            She is best known for: redecorating the interior of the forum for the rolling stones tour, collaborations with Frank Gehry, Norman Foster, and the signage and wayfinding for new public projects in LA. Deborah’s biggest success as a designer was her work on the 1984 LA Olympics. Her Olympic designs essentially took the idea of supergraphics and turned it into a design strategy for which she used to design the medal stands, temporary seating, and signs of all scales. Visually she changed the face of design by using bright colors and integrating the different types of design to make one big masterpiece.