Graphic Design

Winner of the First-Ever QED (Quality, Excellence, Design) award by Digital Book World
 
This is the unrivaled, comprehensive, and award-winning reference tool on graphic design recognized for publishing excellence by the Association of American Publishers. Now, this Fifth Edition of Meggs' History of Graphic Design offers even more detail and breadth of content than its heralded predecessors, revealing a saga of creative innovators, breakthrough technologies, and important developments responsible for paving the historic paths that define the graphic design experience. In addition to classic topics such as the invention of writing and alphabets, the origins of printing and typography, and postmodern design, this new Fifth Edition presents new information on current trends and technologies sweeping the graphic design landscape—such as the web, multimedia, interactive design, and private presses, thus adding new layers of depth to an already rich resource.

With more than 1,400 high-quality images throughout—many new or newly updated—Meggs' History of Graphic Design, Fifth Edition provides a wealth of visual markers for inspiration and emulation. For professionals, students, and everyone who works with or loves the world of graphic design, this landmark text will quickly become an invaluable guide that they will turn to again and again.

Q&A with Author Alston W. Purvis

What’s new in this edition?
The fifth edition has additional coverage of the Middle East, Spain, Portugal, South America, and China as well as multi-media and motion graphics. Also, much in the last chapters is new, since graphic design history is changing almost daily. The last chapters are always the most difficult since we are living in the same period when things are happening.

What are the biggest differences between the last edition and this new edition?
In the last edition, I included many more images and improved the quality of others. Resulting from additional research and discoveries, I naturally made changes to the text, but I essentially maintained the same basic structure of the book. This process continued but far more extensively in the fifth edition.

How do you choose the designers who are in the book?
Designers were chosen for having made significant contributions to Graphic Design history. What distinguishes a master from his or her colleagues is both perplexing and difficult. Although every effort is made to avoid this, there will inevitably be the realization that an important figure was omitted. However, the accomplishments of significant individuals that have withstood the test of time will continue to inspire us.

With so much information to cover, do you find it difficult to revise this title?
Phil Meggs often said—and I agree—that one of the gratifying aspects of this book was being able to write the next edition, as you find things that you missed earlier and that each issue becomes more refined and richer in scope.

Do you receive a lot of feedback from readers?
I welcome and greatly value feedback in every stage of the writing and editing. The feedback I do receive usually involves a point of disagreement, such as having omitted a designer or point. But I welcome any positive or negative input from all sources. Comments from teachers are especially useful, as I find it important to learn how the book is used in classroom situations.

Typography is everywhere. From a drive down the highway or shopping in a grocery store to surfing the web and navigating our PDAs, we are bombarded by words in a plethora of shapes, sizes, and arrangements. It is essential for designers to understand the basics of typography to optimise this communication. This book provides a solid background in typographic knowledge for both print and digital media. Learning these details step-by-step will create a solid foundation in typography and will strengthen a designer's skill set for whatever career focus they may choose.

This is the first book to be published on one of the greatest American designers of the 20th Century, who was as famous for his work in film as for his corporate identity and graphic work. With more than 1,400 illustrations, many of them never published before and written by the leading design historian Pat Kirkham, this is the definitive study that design and film enthusiasts have been eagerly anticipating. Saul Bass (1920-1996) created some of the most compelling images of American post-war visual culture. Having extended the remit of graphic design to include film titles, he went on to transform the genre. His best known works include a series of unforgettable posters and title sequences for films such as Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo and Otto Preminger's The Man With The Golden Arm and Anatomy of a Murder. He also created some of the most famous logos and corporate identity campaigns of the century, including those for major companies such as AT&T, Quaker Oats, United Airlines and Minolta. His wife and collaborator, Elaine, joined the Bass office in the late 1950s. Together they created an impressive series of award-winning short films, including the Oscar-winning Why Man Creates, as well as an equally impressive series of film titles, ranging from Stanley Kubrick s Spartacus in the early 1960s to Martin Scorsese s Cape Fear and Casino in the 1990s. Designed by Jennifer Bass, Saul Bass's daughter and written by distinguished design historian Pat Kirkham who knew Saul Bass personally, this book is full of images from the Bass archive, providing an in depth account of one of the leading graphic artists of the 20th century.

Graphic Design History traces the social and cultural role of visual communication from prehistory to the present, connecting what designers do every day to a history of innovative graphic forms and effects.  It offers a unique and exciting set of critical lenses for thinking about the cultural purpose and historical dimensions of the graphic designer’s work, placing emphasis on the relevance of the history to the practices of designers today.  Designed by the authors, the book is beautiful, spacious, and elegant.  Clearly organized into three content-rich layers, it is informative yet lively and driven by ideas that offer ways of thinking about graphic design from a wealth of historical examples

“Pop culture is often maligned as fleeting, but history shows that sometimes what is pop in one culture has time-honored resonance in later ones. This book is an attempt to show that pop culture, especially as seen through the lenses of design, illustration, satiric and political art (and other things), is integral to a broader understanding of who we are and where we are going.”—Steven Heller, from the Introduction  
 
How do popular culture and graphic design influence one another? What are the goals of design? Are they to sell? To package? To entertain? The answers to these questions are complicated and are intimately tied to the effect design has on the overall culture. POP is the first book to analyze the role of graphic design in the broader culture, as well as the impact of design on other art and entertainment forms, from album covers to baseball stadiums. Author Steven Heller addresses such subjects as:  
 
--pop icons  
--viral and guerilla advertising  
--political satire  
--the history of Interview, Monocle, Mad, and other magazines  
--illusionism and three-dimensional design  
--art for art’s sake  
--design vs. decoration  
--the return of hand lettering  
--art for the masses  
 
 
POP spans over 150 years during which popular culture has influenced mass perception and behavior. Illustrated by more than fifty images, POP is sure to inspire both aspiring and experienced designers.  

"Plan Graphics for the Landscape Designer, Second Edition" takes readers step-by-step through the design graphics process. Written at an accessible level, readers will learn basic drafting tools, lettering and drawing techniques; commonly used textures and symbols; how to read plan graphics; how to develop effective designs; and how to assemble professional portfolios. This edition is filled with new sample drawings, updated photographs and descriptive design illustrations and visuals that make techniques easy to follow and easy to understand. The revision maintains the text's presentation focus and provides helpful tip boxes to teach readers how to draw an effective design. Sufficiently addresses landscape design drafting at an easy to follow level. Introduces basic drafting tools, lettering and drawing techniques, and then describes commonly used textures and symbols and how to create them. Shows readers how to put together the plan, (starting with the plat, sale and title block), how to properly label symbols, and how to develop a plant list. Enhances the reader's ability to communicate ideas more clearly to their clients. An excellent resource for anyone from home gardeners to aspiring landscape

designers.

This classic introduction to high-impact page design is now fully updated for a new generation of designers. Basics of Design: Layout and Typography for Beginners demystifies the design process with straightforward and complete explanations of the fundamental principles that create first-rate visual design. Readers learn essential design terminology and develop their knowledge and skills through visual examples and hands-on activities that reinforce page layout and typography concepts. Side-by-side critiques of before-and-after page layouts help readers understand how to apply design principles to their own efforts and point the way to excellence in design.

Motion Graphics visually explores the process of animated graphic design for film and broadcast profiling the designers who are leading the design revolution in this area. From the groundbreaking work of MTV, the dark and powerful title treatment of the film Seven, to the experimental interactive animation of Razorfish, Inc., this book looks at the individuals and the work that comprise the best in animated design for television, film and new media.