Mid-Century Modern Graphic Design

With sections on illustrated books, book covers posters etc… you get a really good feel for an area of graphic design and the best of what was available at the time. It’s really has a good range of the styles at the time which are super inspiring. I haven’t been this excited about design in a long time!

Ce livre est indispensable pour les fan du design graphique des années 50-60. Une vraie source d'inspiration pour les illustrateurs et graphistes. J'en suis très satisfaite !

This book is a beautiful, thick, highly professional and handsome hardcover compendium of illustrations taken from about the period of 1948---1966. Reproduced here and printed expertly. Full color examples throughout of the work of some illustrators whose names you know (e.g. Alvin Lustig and Jim Flora) and others whom you do not, all of them working in the slightly quirky style and particular colors of the 50's and early-60's. Do note that these are all the work of esteemed professional illustrators-- the book does not contain, say, cheezy labels, ads or kitschy ephemera. Some of it borders upon the "fugly"... but that's entirely the point, right? A lot of it reminds me of the children's books I owned as a small kid in the 1960's. Much of it has a retro "Populuxe" quality, which will be useful to modern designers seeking to recreate this look on their own (a-la SHAG and Derek Yaniger, etc.). Do note that it includes no "60's Mod" stuff, ie., stuff done after about 1963--64. No, this is all just before that.

Excelente livro para quem está começando a se interessar pelo tema. Muitos trabalhos serão familiares para quem já faz pesquisas sobre o assunto. Se tivesse o dobro de imagens/páginas e apresentasse mais designers poderíamos até chamá-lo de bíblia. Para as próximas edições seria bem legal ver embalagens, caixas de brinquedos, cartões de Natal e selos postais. Sim, vale a pena comprá-lo.

A beautiful book - everything about it is a pleasure - from the cover design's tactile quality, to the quantity, quality and breadth of the illustrations. The informative and well written text has led me to research further the work of several designers and so far I've read only the introduction. It's like opening a treasure chest. I think it's definitely worth buying if you are interested in mid-century graphic design.