Gene Federico studied with Leon Friend at the Abraham Lincoln High School. Among his classmates were Alex Steinweiss, Seymour Chwast and William Taubin. He went on to study with Thomas Benrimo at Pratt Institute. After graduating, he studied with Howard Trafton and Herbert Bayer at the Art Students League. After serving in the army during World War II, he participated in an exhibit Four Veterans at the A-D Gallery. This exhibit resulted in an offer by Herbert Bayer to be associate art director at Fortune magazine. Following his time at Fortune, he was art director at Grey Advertising and then at Doyle Dane Bernbach. After DDB he became vice-president and art director at Douglas D. Simon followed by vice-president and group head at Benton and Bowles. In 1965 he co-founded Lord, Geller, Federico and Einstein. During his career he has done advertising work for such clients as Woman's Day, IBM, Container Corporation, Harper's Bazaar, Random House, Doubleday, Columbia Records and Napier . His work is distinctive for its typographic elegance and visual wit. He has won many awards from such organizations as the New York Art Director's Club, AIGA, TDC and the Dusseldorf Poster Competition. In 1980 he was inducted to the Art Director's Club Hall of Fame and in 1987 received the AIGA medal. Throughout his career he has considered himself a craftsman rather than an artist.