Grear was born in Mill Springs, Kentucky on June 12, 1931 to Carl and Elizabeth Grear. After high school Grear joined the Navy, where he trained as an aviation metalsmith, a skill that would subsequently gain him entry to the Art Academy of Cincinnati. There, Grear attended several art and design courses.
Career
Grear started his teaching career at the University of Louisville, before moving on to the Rhode Island School of Design’s graphic design faculty from 1960 to 1998, serving as its chairman from 1965 through 1969. He has earned an international reputation as a leader in the field of design education and has received five honorary doctorates. His teaching style emphasized rigor within design thinking framework. Grear established Malcolm Grear Designers in 1960 and built the studio into a highly respected firm known for its clean lines and clarity of vision. Grear has done memorable visual identity programs for a wide range of clients, including Sonesta International Hotels, Emory University, Colby College Museum of Art, Visual Magnetics, and New Bedford Whaling Museum. MGD has produced award-winning print design work for Scientific American Library, the Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The RISD Museum, The National Gallery, Harvard University, and the Hallmark Photographic Collection. In the realm of environmental graphics, the studio has designed communication and sign systems for Mayo Clinic, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Brown University, King Khalid City and the MBTA, along with exhibitions for numerous museums, including MIT's 150th Anniversary exhibition. His design of the Presbyterian Church USA's logo marked the organization's shift to unify and support for abortion rights. In 1996, MGD was selected to design the "Look of the Games" for the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. The studio was also chosen to design the 31 sports pictograms, the Olympic torch, safety lantern, traveling cauldron, the Olympic medals, and a commemorative poster. Grear, who believes his small studio was chosen "because of our record—because we respect tradition and avoid novelty," commented at the time: "It doesn't get much better than this. This has got to be one of the highest honors for a design firm."
Death and legacy
He died on January 24, 2016 in Wakefield, Rhode Island. The Malcolm Grear Endowed Scholarship Fund was established in 2012 at RISD.
Books
Exhibitions
Inside/Outside: Design and Process, Malcolm Grear Designers, Rhode Island College, 2008
