Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design

by Steven Heller

Author and design expert Steven Heller has revisited and revised the popular classic Design Literacy by revising many of the thoughtful essays from the original and mixing in thirty-two new works. Each essay offers a taste of the aesthetic, political, historical, and personal issues that have engaged designers from the late nineteenth century to the present—from the ubiquitous (the swastika, antiwar posters) to the whimsical (MAD magazine parodies). The essays are organized into eight thematic categories—persuasion, mass media, language, identity, information, iconography, style, and commerce.

This revised edition also highlights recent trends in graphic design such as aesthetic changes in typography in the digital age and the nexus between graphic design and wired culture. This is an eclectic look at how, why, and if graphic design influences our ever-evolving, diverse world.

Genres: Design, Nonfiction, Art Design, Art, Graphic Novels, Reference, History

304 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1997

About the author

Steven Heller writes a monthly column on graphic design books for The New York Times Book Review and is co-chair of MFA Design at the School of Visual Arts. He has written more than 100 books on graphic design, illustration and political art, including Paul Rand, Merz to Emigre and Beyond: Avant Garde Magazine Design of the Twentieth Century, Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design Second Edition, Handwritten: Expressive Lettering in the Digital Age, Graphic Design History, Citizen Designer, Seymour Chwast: The Left Handed Designer, The Push Pin Graphic: Twenty Five Years of Design and Illustration, Stylepedia: A Guide to Graphic Design Mannerisms, Quirks, and Conceits, The Anatomy of Design: Uncovering the Influences and Inspirations in Modern Graphic Design. He edits VOICE: The AIGA Online Journal of Graphic Design, and writes for Baseline, Design Observer, Eye, Grafik, I.D., Metropolis, Print, and Step. Steven is the recipient of the Art Directors Club Special Educators Award, the AIGA Medal for Lifetime Achievement, and the School of Visual Arts' Masters Series Award.

Reviews

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much like his Looking Closer series, this is a book for what should be a redundancy but seems more like an oxymoron every day: the thinking designer. This is not an eye-candy book, full of pretty pictures and not much substance. It is a (brief) primer on design history and evolution. If Design Literacy and Meggs' History of Graphic Design had a baby, that would be the definitive book on the origins, development, and understanding of graphic design.

[Inggita · Rating 1 out of 5]

this is more a history book on design - there are more stories than there are pictures.

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

read this book for the chapter on magazine cover design alone, and it is worth your time.

[Stuart.teicherhotmail.com · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't finish it- needed some consistent narrative. It's too choppy for me.

[Rob Adey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting survey of design history through landmark examples. Really suffers from a lack of images, though - one per (admittedly very short) chapter isn't really enough for this kind of thing.

[Henry Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still reading, loved it!

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great group of essays!

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a bad book, just not my style. I've always found anthologies to be a challenge in terms of consistently staying interested. Some of the essays are very fascinating, including one about the introduction of mass market paperback novels. However, there were some essays that I just was not interested in.

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

the book has a ton of design history information. I only got a through the first section and half the second. Which may be a shame but I just wasn't into it right now. Maybe I'll give it go at a later date and could give more attention to the reading. I found it just be okay so far.

[Annie Wang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still reading, very much learning.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fantastic book about modern design

[Tam Mckenzie]

Engin & Sciences - NC998 .H45 1999

[Numberbox · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have both design literacy and design literacy continued. The second book is orange soft cover medium sized, with a pair of glasses on the cover.

[Cleyton Yano]

n sei

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't found a book by Steven Heller that i've hated. Great book.