Design Connoisseur: An Eclectic Collection of Imagery and Type [Paperback]

Steven Heller (Author), Louise Fili (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000

Exquisite graphic design artifacts make up this unusual collection culled from the pages of type and typography books spanning four vintage decades. Dating from 1900 to 1940, most of the rare type specimens, layouts, marks, and decorations from the period have never been reprinted before, and will serve as inspiration and resource for practicing design professionals, students, and teachers of graphic design. The rich quality of the black-and-white reproductions will allow designers to scan and use the designs in their own work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Exquisite graphic design artifacts comprise this unusual collection culled from type and typography books from 1900 to 1940." -- Giustificativo

"Type lovers and history buffs alike will enjoy this gallery of vintage typefaces, ornaments, letterheads, and trademarks." -- ID Magazine

About the Author

Steven Heller is editor of the AIGA Journal of Graphic Design and the chair of the MFA design department at the School of Visual Arts. He is the author or editor of more than seventy books on graphic design, and he is a contributor or contributing editor to nearly 25 magazines, including Print, U&lc, Eye Magazine, Communications Arts, ID magazine, Graphics, Design Issues, and Mother Jones. Since 1986 he has been senior art director of the New York Times, which he first joined as an art director in 1974. From 1967-1973, he served as art director for numerous publications, including Interview magazine, The New York Free Press, Rock Magazine, Screw magazine, Mobster Times, Evergreen Review, and the Irish Arts Center.

He was awarded three design grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, in 1986,1988, and 1990. In 1996, he received a Special Educators Award from The Art Director’s Club of New York. He has been the curator of ten design exhibitions, including “The Art of Satire” at the Pratt Graphics Center and “Art Against War” at the Parsons School of Design. Since 1986, he has directed “Modernism & Eclecticism: A History of American Graphic Design,” an annual symposium at the School of Visual Arts. He lives in New York.

Allworth Press books written or edited by Steven Heller:

Design Connoisseur (See also Louise Fili)

Graphic Design Timeline (See also Elinor Pettit)

Design Culture (See also Marie Finamore)

Design Dialogues (See also Elinor Pettit)

Design Literacy (See also Karen Pomeroy)

The Education of a Graphic Designer

Looking Closer (See also Michael Bierut, William Drenttel, and DK Holland)

Looking Closer 2 (See also Michael Bierut, William Drenttel, and DK Holland)

Louise Fili is president of Louise Fili Ltd., specializing in logo, package, restaurant, type, book and book jacket design. She is co-author, with Steven Heller, of Italian Art Deco, Dutch Moderne, Deco España, French Modern, German Modern, Streamline, British Modern, Deco Type, and Typology.

Allworth Press Books by Louise Fili: Design Connoisseur (See also Steven Heller)

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Allworth Press (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581150695
• ISBN-13: 978-1581150698
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,124,483 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An okay collection of Deco and Nouveau type, March 31, 2009

By 

outernationalist "Natasha" (Ft. Lauderdale, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Design Connoisseur: An Eclectic Collection of Imagery and Type (Paperback)

This book is a collection of mostly Deco and Nouveau type printed in black and white only. The typography section is by far the largest section in the book, but I felt that there wasn't enough differentiation between some specimens and a lot were too similar to each other. It was helpful that they were displayed in varying ways, though: specimen sheets, advertisements, stickers, etc. Overall, the book is a good resource to have for anyone REALLY interested in vintage type and lettering, but it doesn't provide enough unique content for someone who already has a background in Deco and Nouveau graphic design.