Arnd Friedrichs, Kerstin Finger (eds)
Monobloc is the term for that stackable plastic chair found on terraces the world over. Design nerds hate it, but it’s probably the most successful piece of furniture ever. In addition to homage paid by Philippe Starck, Jerszy Seymour, Maarten Baas and Konstantin Grcic, the book presents photography and art in a tongue-in-cheek take on the phenomenon of this chair.
Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553178. Paperback. $78.50. link
William L Bird, Jr
Washington librarian Faith Bradford spent half a century building, furnishing and peopling an elaborate 23-room doll’s house, now in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. She also produced a manuscript detailing the lives of the house’s inhabitants, and it’s all woven together here in a loving portrait of a sentimental American pastime.
Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568989747. Paperback. $42. link
[Art]ifact is about innovative product designs that go beyond the conventional and wreak havoc on perception. With brilliant use of form, material and colour, these products stretch our imagination and interact with us beyond their basic function. Artifact features intelligent, playful, ironic designs, each with an angle that will tickle the brain and touch the heart. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822866. Hardback. $75. link
Gathering a rich selection of invitations created for events ranging from business functions to private parties, By Invitation Only investigates contemporary invitation design. Examining designers’ use of simple graphics, materials and tricks, this title asks you to forget the torment of opening junk and release the thrill of unwrapping more than 160 extraordinary invitations. Victionary. ISBN 9789881732798. Paperback. $79.50. link
Andrea Gleiniger, Georg Vrachliotis (editors)
Part of the Context Architecture series, this collection of essays examines the ubiquitous concept of ‘code’ – both as computer algorithm and as a broader scientific and cultural concept – and the effect of the code as algorithm and design metaphor on architectural practice. Birhäuser Verlag. ISBN 9783034601177. Paperback. $40. link
In a world awash with colour, unicolour designs can have great impact. Colour Mania looks at design projects that rely on a single or limited colour palette, showcasing projects by designers from around the world in 10 colour categories.
Victionary. ISBN 9789881732811. Paperback. $83.50. link
With four in-depth case studies, Design Taste takes a round-the-world tour of the hottest cafes, bars and restaurants, uncovering how the design talent behind them inspires customers with astonishing environments and graphics, from logos, signage, name cards and menus to uniforms and tableware. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822996. Hardback. $79.50. link
John Tingey
After studying the British postal regulations, Reginald Bray (1879-1939) began sending strange objects through the post unwrapped – bowler hats, bicycle pumps, his dog and eventually himself. He continued his experiments with mail that was addressed cryptically, with pictograms or to non-existent places – making himself perhaps the world’s first mail artist. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568988726. Hardback. $40. link
Faile documents 10 years of the collaboration between Brooklyn-based street artists Patrick McNeil and Patrick Miller. Their work is a stunning mix of collage and overprinting that evokes pop art, xerography, comic books and newspapers with a collage-ey 21st century aesthetic. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899552928. Hardback. $115. link
Designers are looking back to the 20th century in search of inspiration in the pixel age. Whether to revive lost enthusiasm, as a tribute to the art and design movements of the century past, or a trip down memory lane, Flashback unveils how 20th-century design continues to inspire modern creative studios in design, typography and illustration. Victionary. ISBN 9789881732774. Paperback. $75. link
Graphic design is all around us – there are graphic elements in all the objects in daily life, from clothes to household goods; even our houses themselves. Graphics are part of making objects beautiful and desirable and creating a relationship with the user. From big to small, from head to toe, Graphics Alive reveals the power of graphics all around us. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822828. Paperback. $75. link
John Ochsendorf, Michael Freeman
The Guastavino family, a father and son team of Spanish immigrants, oversaw the construction of thousands of spectacular vaulted ceilings in buildings across the US from the 1880s to the 1950s. Guastavino Vaulting traces the development of this remarkable construction technology from its Mediterranean roots to its highest achievements in the United States.
Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568987415. Hardback. $100. link
This volume in the Amatterofdesign series focuses on how illustration is used to develop relationships between designers and audiences. Divided into 5 sections – Dream & Fantasy; Fun & Playful; Gloomy & Mystery; Structural & Complex; and Distinctive & Unique – the work presented here shows how illustrators and designers work to present themselves. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822927. Hardback. $66.50. link
Jonathan D. Lippincott
When Lippincott, Inc opened in 1966, it put the tools of industrial fabrication in the hands of sculptors, allowing them to work on a scale they had previously only dreamt of. Lippincott made work for sculptors including Claes Oldenburg, Louise Nevelson, Ellsworth Kelly, Robert Indiana, and Barnett Newman, documented here in more than 300 photographs. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568989341. Hardback. $78.50. link
TwoPoints.net, editor
The true importance of signage and wayfinding systems only becomes evident when they don’t work. This book presents the unsung heroes of functional graphic design. The range of attractive, experimental, low-budget, and flexible solutions here make it an inspirational and insightful examination of current possibilities for practical applied information graphics.
Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553123. Hardback. $130. link
With print, animation and film, graphics help us to visualise music and also to understand where it is coming from. This eclectic and inspiring collection of music graphics ranges from striking record covers to CD packaging, concert posters and more, and from pure graphics to photography and collage, in music from both the west and the east. Victionary. ISBN 97898898229272. Paperback. $75. link
Brisbane design collecive Rinzen started Neighbourhood in 2004. Artists and designers around the world customised featureless soft toys before passing them on to the next artists. The book documents the quirky results of this unusual collaboration over more than 200 pages bound in a special felt cover. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822859. Paperback. $75. link
Pamela Burton
Pamela Burton begins every garden or landscape project, no matter the size, with a big idea. The idea must be ‘simple, harmonious, perceptible and the product of a totality of experience.’ This presents 19 of her built works for public and private clients, with sites ranging from beach to desert and from farm to city block. Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 9781568989655. Hardback. $85. link
R. Klanten, H. Hellige, J. Middendorp, eds
There’s a big move in graphic design towards the use of hand-made and custom typography. The work documented here uses illustration, hand lettering, calligraphy and other hand-made type solutions to stunning effect on both the page and the ubiquitous digital screen. A follow-up to the successful Playful Type. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553185. Hardback. $105. link
A salute to 46 Asian design talents including Keiichi Tanaami and Wabisabi from Japan, MEWE Design Alliance and Chenman from China, anothermountainman and IdN from Hong Kong, Singaporean collectives :phunk studio and Me and Mister Jones, Zinoo Park from Korea, and OSISU from Thailand, showcasing graphics, packaging, fashion and furniture. Victionary. ISBN 9789881732712. Hardback. $105. link
Printwork documents the printed work of many top designers – publications and promotional items such as catalogues, identity material, leaflets, packaging, name cards, brochures and more. Whether you are a die-hard print fan or just curious about the trade, you will find something of interest here. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822897. Paperback. $79.50. link
Latest edition of this international magazine for landscape architecture, city planning and urban design. Birkhauser Verlag. ISBN 9783034603256. Paperback. $35. link
Material is one of the most important elements underpinning architecture, interior, product, industrial and fashion design. Simply Material presents objects created with individuality and narrative qualities in a range of materials – from tree roots to plastics, ceramics and optical fibre – using sophisticated new technologies or traditional craftsmanship. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822873. Paperback. $75. link
Simply Packaging examines the evolving art of packaging design and its reflection of the times. Examining the subject in three main sections – Brand Seduction (branding & identity), Lifestyle Stimuli (lifestyle products) and Gobbling Desires (for food & beverages) – the title features the hottest packaging design from around the world. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822958. Paperback. $75. link
From Andy Warhol to Mark Rothko, Emilio Pucci to Hanna Werning, artists and designers ushave used pattern to inject new energy into their work. Featuring creatives such as Japanese graphic designer Takora Kimiyoshi Futori, Swedish wallpaper maker Lisa Bengtsson and Parisian design Studio 5.5 Designers, Simply Pattern aptly shows that pattern is omnipresent. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822989. Paperback. $75. link
R. Klanten, L. Feireiss, S. Ehmann (eds)
Featuring an extensive collection of work in which images and space meld seamlessly into a single narrative entity, Staging Space offers new solutions for exhibition and event architecture, scenography, media installations, interiors, and stage design as well as multimedia brand concepts. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553161. Hardback. $115. link
The hybrid of flat graphics and real objects creates a pictorial language that is more than just make-believe. Stereographics examines how graphic design has made its mark on the 3-D realm, looking at four case studies, explaining each step in the design process with insights into problem-solving, plus showcasing a diverse collection of works from over 60 designers worldwide. Victionary. ISBN 9789889822903. Paperback. $75. link
Tattoo Icons offers a selection of refreshing and unique icons, symbols, characters and type-based tattoo designs by leading artists and designers including Benjamin Guedel, Eighthourday, MusaCollective, Marti Guixe, Jon Burgenman, Rinzen, Takora, Sweden Graphics and Swigg, many reproduced as temporary tattoos so you can try them yourself. Victionary. ISBN 9789628650477. Hardback. $115. link
Daniel Eckler
Featuring T-shirts created by innovative and style-setting brands, Torso presents T-shirts as projection screens for the most original contemporary visual codes. Compiled by Formatmag.com founder and editor-in-chief Daniel Eckler, this book is a definitive guide to today’s T-shirt culture. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553093. Paperback. $90. link
R. Klanten, S. Ehmann (eds)
A survey of the state of editorial design. Internationally renowned designers present their projects and comment on the various stages of a publication’s conceptualisation, design and production. These range from topic selection, structure, and flow to more specific aspects such as type area, layout, typography, pictorial language, navigation, and cover design. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553147. Hardback. $130. link
Type is one of design’s essential elements. This title not only presents a rich selection of experimental and inspirational typefaces and their application, it also reveals the diversity of approach in contemporary typography. The book showcases work by up-and-coming practitioners as well as renowned icons. Definitely one for the type addicts… Victionary. ISBN 9789889822941. Paperback. $79.50. link
Miron Zownir
Miron Zownir’s expressionistic black-and-white photos document the people who live in the shadows of urban areas in New York, Los Angeles, Berlin, and post-Communist Eastern Europe, the misfits, freaks and the homeless, people who dwell somewhere between self-determination and self-destruction, desolation and personal obsession. Die Gestalten Verlag. ISBN 9783899553154. Hardback. $105. link
Flavour explores the unique flavour design develops through the use of photography. It showcases the work of 44 creators from around the world. Each has made artworks that represent their personal taste and style. In interviews they discuss the ideas, thoughts and fantasies they draw from daily life that are not necessarily design-conscious. Victionary. ISBN 9789628650415. Paperback. $85. link
home