New Ornamental Type: Decorative Lettering in the Digital Age [Hardcover]

Steven Heller (Author), Gail Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2010

Words becoming pictures: a rich typographical resource of images and inspiration for designers.

Expressive lettering and illustrated words: here is a kaleidoscope of highly animated text and type from a broad spectrum of styles and effects. Psychedelia, Hip-Hop, Gothic, flowers, smoke, hair, electricity, and monuments are just a few of the creative allusions for the dramatic and intricate examples inspired by nature, history, and just about anything that is visually provocative.

Beginning with an historical overview of ornamental type and how it has evolved through the major creative periods from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present, the book includes hundreds of contemporary examples from around the world, organized into three sections: History Lesson, Au Naturel, and Eclectic. Each includes a brief essay introducing the background, influences, and outstanding aspects of the graphic work so beautifully displayed.

New Ornamental Type is an essential reference for practitioners and students, and for anyone who appreciates the sheer delight of type as illustration. 272 color and 88 black-and-white illustrations

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Steven Heller is the co-chair of the MFA Designer as Author program and co-founder of the MFA in Design Criticism and MFA in Interaction Design programs at the School of Visual Arts, New York. For thirty- three years he was an art director at the New York Times, and currently writes the “Visuals” column for the New York Times Book Review. He is editor of the AIGA VOICE: Online Journal of Design and contributing editor to Print, EYE, Baseline, and ID magazines. He contributes to Design Observer and writes the DAILY HELLER blog for Print magazine. He is the author or editor of over 130 books on design and popular culture, including Design Literacy, Design Disasters, Born Modern: The Life and Design of Alvin Lustig, and Vintage Type and Graphics. He is the recipient of the 1999 AIGA Medal for Lifetime Achievement. Heller lives in New York.

Gail Anderson is the creative director of design at SpotCo, New York, a former senior art director of Rolling Stone magazine, and an American Institute of Graphic Arts medalist.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Thames & Hudson (May 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0500515026
• ISBN-13: 978-0500515020
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 9.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #432,709 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steven Heller, author and editor of over 130 books on graphic design, satiric art and popular culture, is the co-founder and co-chair of the MFA Designer as Author program at the School of Visual Arts, New York. He is also co-founder of the MFA in Design Criticism, MFA in Interaction Design, MFA Social Documentary Film and MPS Branding programs. Although he does not hold an undergraduate or graduate degree he has devoted much of his career to fostering design education venues, opportunities and environments.

On the editorial side, for over 40 years he has been an art director for various underground and mainstream periodicals. For 33 years he was an art director at the New York Times (28 of them as senior art director New York Times Book Review). He currently writes the "Visuals" column for the Book Review and "Graphic Content" for the T-Style/The Moment blog (http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/author/steven-heller/). He is editor of AIGA VOICE: Online Journal of Design, a contributing editor to Print, EYE, and Baseline, and a frequent contributor to Metropolis and ID magazines. He contributes regularly to Design Observer and writes the DAILY HELLER blog for Print Magazine (http://blog.printmag.com/dailyheller/). His 135 books include "Design Literacy, " "Paul Rand," "Graphic Style" (with Seymour Chwast), "Stylepedia" (with Louise Fili), "The Design Entrepreneur" and "Design School Confidential" (both with Lita Talarico), "Iron Fists: Branding the Twentieth Century Totalitarian State", and the most recent, "Born Modern: The Life and Design of Alvin Lustig."

He is the recipient of the 1999 AIGA Medal for Lifetime Achievement. His website is www.hellerbooks.com and his blog, The Daily Heller sponsored by Print magazine is http://imprint.printmag.com/daily-heller/