Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars [Hardcover]

Steven Heller (Author), Louise Fili (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 11, 2005

A sprawling compendium of Art Deco design from across Europe, Euro Deco features a broad range of exemplary graphic ephemera. Culled from Steven Heller and Louise Fili's popular International Deco series of inspirational reference books, the material in Euro Deco comes from Italy, Spain, the UK, Germany, France, and the Netherlands, primarily between WWI and WWII -- the time when the continent gave birth to modern graphic design. Well over a thousand images from posters, packaging, advertisements, menus, and brochures display the elegant geometry and harmonious marriage of typography and illustration that make deco a popular style to this day. A generous package at an attractive price, Euro Deco is poised to be a standard graphic resource for designers, collectors, and aesthetes alike.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One of the most beloved design styles of nostalgic collectors, Art Deco developed in France following World War I and quickly became popular around the world, proliferating in lively posters, typefaces and skyscraper designs. Borrowing from Modernism's austere simplicity, while incorporating flourishes that would appeal to a mass audience, Art Deco allowed manufacturers to boost consumer desire for new and fashionable products. A compilation of six now out-of-print books from Chronicle's Deco Graphic Design series, this volume offers lesser-known examples of Deco graphic design from six countries: France, Italy, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and England. The playful advertisements and product labels, many created by unknown artists, demonstrate the breadth of the style's reach and its variation across Europe. Dutch beer posters, German cigarette packages and Italian book covers burst with color, allowing readers to slip back into a time in which the airplane was "a symbol of futuristic wonder" and inventions like furnaces and Pyrex pots were making their debuts. In each chapter, Heller, senior art director for the New York Times, and Fili, principal of a New York graphic design firm, introduce the historical context surrounding each country's Art Deco movement, noting prominent poster artists who influenced the field. Whimsical and informative, this volume should keep readers coming back for multiple perusals.
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About the Author

Steven Heller is the art director of the New York Times Book Review. He is the author of over ninety books on graphic design, popular art, and satiric art. He lives in New York City.

Louise Fili is principal of Louise Fili Ltd., and the recipient of numerous design awards. She lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 500 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books; 1ST edition (January 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081184532X
• ISBN-13: 978-0811845328
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 9.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #708,848 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Graphic nostalgia, August 1, 2007

By 

Robin Benson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars (Hardcover)

The origins of this book were six from the Chronicle Deco series. They covered European commercial art (1920 to 1940) from Britain, France, Germany, Holland Italy and Spain and about half of each is reproduced in this excellent and beautiful looking book.

Fili and Heller write in the introduction that Art Deco would have been launched sooner had it not been for the First World War interrupting the plans of the French to stage a huge trade fair to showcase their commercial creativity. The world had to wait until 1925 for the Paris 'Exposition des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Moderne' to kick-start a new visual culture.

The six nation chapters are sub-divided into graphic sections like: culture, fashion, beauty, industry or typography. There are also sections unique to some countries, Germany has samples of paper money printed by local authorities because inflation had made the Deutschmark worthless, Britain has a section devoted to the lovely graphics promoting the London Underground. Each chapter starts with an interesting and comprehensive overview explaining how each countries existing design styles and designers were influenced by Deco and then the following pages reproduce printed examples, more than two thousand color illustrations in all.

There is an American edition in the Chronicle series: Streamline: American Art Deco following the same subject format over 132 pages. Also worth checking out is Patricia Kery's Art Deco Graphics, a big book with 476 illustrations which looks at magazines, posters, fashion and books rather than commercial print and packaging which is the main strength of the Fili and Heller book. For the money though I don't think 'Euro Deco' can be beat.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good, July 16, 2010

By 

Ajane - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars (Hardcover)

Pretty good, not exactly what I thought it would be but a good reference of ideas

5.0 out of 5 stars AMAZING ART, August 24, 2009

By 

S. Myers (TX, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars (Hardcover)

This book has done so much for me artistically and for my husband's love of graphic design. I even had a tattoo designed using one of the pieces from this book. There's a good variety of pieces ranging from anti-alcohol calendars to perfume ads and typography from this general time frame that is the early 1900's. I would highly recommend it!!!!