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Home » Book Club - Graphic Design

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Book Club: Graphic Design

This month we deliver the fifth instalment of our Design Discipline in Focus feature, drawing attention to graphic design. ...

These publications delineate the artistic principles, practice, enterprise and history of visual communication. Their authors study the semiotic relationship between the textual and visual. They show how these senses of approach unify and emerge as a meaningful encounter for an audience. These instructional guidelines will help you to connect the dots in your craft and career.

 Adrian Shaughnessy mentors you on making an impact, Victionary showcases an astonishing array of logotypes from across the globe, Catharine Slade-Brooking covers the creation of an unforgettable brand identity and Phaidon Press provides an intercontinental account of the discipline's past. As always, you will find a bundle deal here with 10% off and free delivery. Why not also check out our edit of graphic design gifting.

1. How to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing your Soul

Adrian Shaughnessy, published by Laurence King (2005)

Adrian Shaughnessy is an acclaimed visual communicator, writer and educator. Shaughnessy has illustrated his craft across various accomplished ventures. In 1988, he co-founded the agency Intro. In 2005, he published his book How to Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul. In 2009, he co-launched the publishing house Unit Editions. Most recently, their press got shortlisted by the Design Museum for the Beazley Design of the Year 2017. In his graphics guidebook, Shaughnessy peers through the veil of the discipline and exposes the complexities that lie beneath. In nine chapters and eight interview portions, he reveals the valuable characteristics of current designers, interpersonal and technical skills, finding relevant jobs, distinctions between freelance and studio workplaces, self-promotion procedures, working for clients, and present-day graphics and creative processes. His profiles feature fellow practitioners such as Jonathan Barnbrook, Paul Sahre and Magnus Voll Mathiassen. Shaughnessy puts you through the paces of the profession, contemplates the concerns of his contemporaries and indicates how to stand out from the crowd in a striking but saturated field.

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2. From Type to Logo: The Best Logotypes from Around the World

Published by Victionary (2022) 

Victor Cheung established Victionary in 2001. Their publishing press produces monographic books on creative disciplines, such as fine art, graphic design and illustration, which are always adventurous and revelatory. In 2022, they assembled this tome on wordmarks. This title is in three parts: Logotype - Feature Stories and Showcase. The first part highlights a delightful selection of wordmarks. They are arranged into eight styles: initial, sans-serif, serif, decorative, bold, graphic, structural and variation. The second section shares several compelling feature stories. These accounts profile four studios: Brand Brothers, Toby Ng Design, For The People and Feebles Studio. They concentrate on collaborative projects with their clients: Grow Deal, The University of Hong Kong, Tech Central and Forevents. The third and final portion underscores an assortment of significant wordmarks worldwide. They analyse collectives such as F61 Agency, Caserne and Studio SPGD, conveying their brand identities, operations and aims. This text will teach you to turn an endearing letter into a monumental wordmark. Unleash your illustrations into the industry and cause a stylistic sensation akin to Arial, Baskerville or Cézanne.

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“The ultimate law of language is... that nothing can ever reside in a single term... linguistic signs are unrelated to what they designate and, therefore, 'a' cannot designate anything without the aid of 'b' and vice versa, or... that both have value only by the difference between them.”

- Ferdinand de Saussure

3. Creating a Brand Identity: A Guide for Designers

Catharine Slade-Brooking, published by Laurence King (2016)

Catharine Slade-Brooking is an applauded graphic designer, author and lecturer. Her specialist areas surround branding, identity and illustration. She has worked for significant media clientele, such as the British Broadcasting Corporation, Lloyds Bank and the Sunday Times. In 2016, Slade-Brooking shared her expertise via a book on brand identity. She examines this topic throughout eight sections: Branding Basics - Brand Anatomy - Brand Strategy - The Design Process - Research - Analysis - Concept Development and Delivering the Final Design. These chapters include a range of photographs and quotations, five case studies and seven exercise segments. The accounts review world-renowned brands: Uniqlo, Apple, Milka Chocolate, Lucozade and Fazer Café. The activities address performing brand analysis, creating mood boards, partaking in student exercises, producing consumer profiles, investigating competitor companies, making analysis boards and developing assessment strategies. Slade-Brooking carefully chronicles the planning, definition, design, production, testing and distribution of corporate image. She demonstrates how you establish your trademark look, distinguish this from business competitors and have it resonate with a diverse demographic.

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4. Graphic Classics

Published by Phaidon Press (2024) 

In 2017, Phaidon produced the tome, Graphic: 500 Designs that Matter. In 2024, they redeveloped this popular publication into Graphic Classics. This encyclopaedia of visual communication unfolds over 528 pages, cites 500 works, references 400 designers, pinpoints 33 countries and encompasses 5 continents. Phaidon separates this information into 11 sections: advertising - books - book covers - identities - information designs - logos – magazines/ newspapers - magazine covers - posters - record/ CD covers - typefaces. They display this data in 2 parts. The former shows a succession of large-scale illustrations. The latter arranges them into a chronological timeline. They carefully lay out the international biography of the discipline. Their timeline commences in 1377, with the Jikji document by Baegun Hwasang from Cheongju, South Korea and concludes in 2023, with Ben’s Best Blnz identity by Eddie Opara from Vermont, United States. It includes progressive practitioners from the past and emerging creators of today, such as typeface designer Claude Garamond, textiles craftsman William Morris and animation image-maker Shira Inbar. Phaidon escorts you on an action-packed expedition of the subject that expertly portrays its extent, variety and ingenuity. 

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