Raymond Loewy Livery design for Air Force One 1962

  • Not on view

Designing corporate identities was a major part of Loewy’s practice. His modern and elegant design for the livery of JFK’s Air Force One transformed this particular Boeing 707 into an important element of the Kennedy administration's global brand. According to Loewy, Kennedy chose a red-and-gold design from the initial concept sketches presented to him at the White House but asked for it to be rendered in blue, which he said was his favorite color (and also that of the Democrats). Loewy recalled that Kennedy also chose the Caslon typeface—which resembles the one used in the heading of the Declaration of Independence—for the legend "United States of America." The new Air Force One entered service in fall 1962.

Gallery label from 2016.
Medium
Gouache, colored pencil, graphite on paper
Dimensions
Approx: 10 1/2 × 22" (26.7 × 55.9 cm)
Credit
Gift of Jo Carole and Ronald S. Lauder
Object number
1073.2015
Department
Architecture and Design
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