Emigre: Graphic Design into the Digital Realm (Book) [Paperback]

Rudy VanderLans (Author), Zuzana Licko (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 13, 1994 | ISBN-10: 0471285471 | ISBN-13: 978-0471285472 | Edition: 1

In 1984 a radically new graphic design magazine set out to explore the as-yet-untapped and uncharted possibilities of Macintosh-generated graphic design. Boldly new and different, Emigre broke rules, opened eyes and earned its creators, Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko, cult status in the world of graphic design. After a decade of publishing, the jury is still out on Emigre. But now, thanks to this comprehensive 10-year retrospective, you can reach your own conclusions. Are Emigre’s Mac-generated graphics important, influential and controversial…or just plain ugly? You decide. "The only people who have trouble reading Emigre are graphic designers who have been trained to make type clear. The rest of the world doesn’t live in that purist atmosphere." —Chuck Byrne, Print Magazine, September 1992 Here gathered together for the first time, you’ll find: Every Emigre cover ever issued A full catalog of over 80 Emigre typefaces Emigre’s most striking editorial layouts Plus stimulating and provocative commentary from both Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko How has a magazine that prints just 7,000 copies managed to outrage so many graphic designers while inspiring so many others? The answer is in your hands.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

In 1984 a radically new graphic design magazine set out to explore the as-yet-untapped and uncharted possibilities of Macintosh-generated graphic design. Boldly new and different, Emigre broke rules, opened eyes and earned its creators, Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko, cult status in the world of graphic design. After a decade of publishing, the jury is still out on Emigre. But now, thanks to this comprehensive 10-year retrospective, you can reach your own conclusions. Are Emigre’s Mac-generated graphics important, influential and controversial…or just plain ugly? You decide. "The only people who have trouble reading Emigre are graphic designers who have been trained to make type clear. The rest of the world doesn’t live in that purist atmosphere." —Chuck Byrne, Print Magazine, September 1992 Here gathered together for the first time, you’ll find: Every Emigre cover ever issued A full catalog of over 80 Emigre typefaces Emigre’s most striking editorial layouts Plus stimulating and provocative commentary from both Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko How has a magazine that prints just 7,000 copies managed to outrage so many graphic designers while inspiring so many others? The answer is in your hands.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (January 13, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471285471
• ISBN-13: 978-0471285472
• Product Dimensions: 14.9 x 10.9 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,351,013 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars buy a bigger bookshelf for this one, March 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Emigre: Graphic Design into the Digital Realm (Book) (Paperback)

Somewhat of a biased reviewer, I recommend this book to any person that loves typography and wants to see the results of tremendous creative forces within the field. Or, if you have wanted to do something for a long time but didn't think you could do it ... also recommended for you.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for any graphics/media undergaduate, November 29, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Emigre: Graphic Design into the Digital Realm (The Book : Graphic Design Into the Digital Realm) (Paperback)

Ever read that outsize magazine that always seems to have pages missing in your school library? Or maybe you have used one of the many typefaces from the Emigre stable...

This book is essetial reading for anyone with even a passing interest in design. The authors are designers (Vanderlans) and typographers (Zuzana Licko) of the highest order and seem to occupy an unusual middle ground somehwere between traditional print and digital multimedia. This book expounds their theories and shows why they should be regarded as highly by the public as they are by students and other designers.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful retrospective of Emigre type foundry, July 29, 2006

By 

byrner (The South) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Emigre: Graphic Design into the Digital Realm (The Book : Graphic Design Into the Digital Realm) (Paperback)

Nowadays it's hard to remember that there was ever a time that Emigre was considered shockingly radical. With the massive surge of alternative type foundries and indie type designers, it's pretty hard to think of Emigre as "indie" any more. Not to mention the huge success of their typeface Mason--slapped over so many album covers and print ads in the last thirteen years that it's become a pest font damn near approaching that of Cooper Black or Hobo. But Emigre WAS radical, as this book reminds us. And they did more than just start a revolution in computer designed type. Their real value was to reintroduce a kind of type-centric design renaissance that hadn't really been seen since Jan Tschichold's "The New Typography".

Emigre made typographic design solutions exciting again. They also taught me a great lesson--type is something to think about and rant about--it's not just window dressing to go around the art. Who needs to design around a photograph when with the right font and some imagination you can ditch the photo altogether and have something considerably more challenging?

Anyway, if you can't tell, I think pretty highly of this book and agree that every designer should keep a copy around. More importantly, I think design students should look at it to get an idea of what IS possible with type--not just Emigre type, but with a true typographic approach to design, which I think the Emigre style embodies.

The book is several years old now and evidently out of print. Still it's worth the trouble to buy a used copy as they pop up from time to time.