Cal Swann

Cal Swann is a distinguished design academic and typographer with a career spanning over fifty years, notably impacting graphic design education in both the UK and Australia.

Swann began his career after studying typography at Leicester College of Art, receiving his NDD in 1956. Early roles included work in print design and advertising, as well as lecturing across the UK. He served as Head of Graphic Design at Saint Martin’s School of Art in London (1981–1986), interacting with leading European designers. His next UK post was as Dean and Professor of Typographic Design at Liverpool Polytechnic, with responsibilities spanning Fine Art, Fashion, Textiles, Communication, Interior, and Product Design.

Swann moved to Australia in 1989, becoming Head of Design at the University of South Australia, where he was appointed Professor of Typographic Design. In 1996, Swann joined Curtin University (Perth, WA) as Professor of Design, developing the first professional design course offered by distance education and coordinating research degrees until his retirement in 2001.

He continued teaching part-time, developing and teaching online typography courses for Virtu Design Institute until 2019.

Swann was awarded a Professorship in Typographic Design (University of South Australia), marking his international academic status. He is credited with developing one of the first global online Master of Design courses.

His books, including Techniques of Typography (1969) and Language and Typography (1991), are considered influential in design education.

He served on the national council of the Design Institute Australia in the early two thousands and most recently he has published the Book of Cal’s, a reflection on being a designer and educator in the second half of the twentieth century.