A chunky, distinctive object of brilliant design in and of itself, Stylepedia is the first handy, cross-referenced desk guide to the kaleidoscope that is modern design. In hundreds of illustrated entries, Heller and Fili, the award-winning authors of Euro Deco and numerous other popular design titles, survey the designers, schools, and movements that comprise the practice today as well as take a fascinating glimpse back at some of the seminal early leaders. From the first Santa Claus to appear on a Coca-Cola bottle to the increasingly ubiquitous camouflage tee shirt, iconic everyday items of yesterday and today provide valuable inspiration to designers and design aficionados. As quirky as it is useful and positively packed with lavish color illustrations, this designer's design compendium is the only one of its kind.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Steven Heller is the art director of the New York Times Book Review and the author, co-author, or editor of over 90 books on design and popular culture. He is the recipient of the 1999 AIGA Medal for Lifetime Achievement.
Louise Fili has co-authored fourteen design books with Steven Heller. Her design work is in the permanent collections of the Library of Congress, the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, and the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and she is a member of the Art Directors Hall of Fame. The authors live in New York.
Louise Fili has co-authored fourteen design books with Steven Heller. Her design work is in the permanent collections of the Library of Congress, the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, and the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and she is a member of the Art Directors Hall of Fame. The authors live in New York.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By Robin Benson
Format:Paperback
The two authors have scoured the rural routes of the graphic landscape to come up with 113 interesting entries for their book, from Agit retro to Zanol. If you haven't heard of Zanol, join the queue. It turns out this thirties founded company was an early style setter in having a corporate identity for its consumer product packaging and judging from the illustrations shown with the entry they probably worked, too.
The entries, as the authors rightly point out in the introduction, are their own choice for what they consider worthwhile graphic styles from the last hundred years or so. I thought the selection, at times, seems rather esoteric. What styles can be derived from the entries on Mini mannequins (seen on shop counters) Chinese calendar girls or Ripley's Believe it or not? Here they are though and it's certainly worth reading about them. No doubt readers will have their own worthwhile contributions to graphic styles missing from the book. Mine would be: Champion Papers 'Imagination' paper sample books, Twen magazine (the very influential German title) Blue Note record covers, Pentagram, Photolettering Inc and the USA Today weather maps.
The book is nicely designed but rather text heavy. I would have preferred more illustrations in a book dealing with essentially visual themes and I wish the authors had gone to the trouble of including, where practical, a suggested book at the end of each entry. There is a bibliography in the back with titles that have a generalised overview of the subject. The word conceit in the title blurb is very apposite because the book has its own conceit: finger tabs in a book of 336 pages.... Read more ›
The entries, as the authors rightly point out in the introduction, are their own choice for what they consider worthwhile graphic styles from the last hundred years or so. I thought the selection, at times, seems rather esoteric. What styles can be derived from the entries on Mini mannequins (seen on shop counters) Chinese calendar girls or Ripley's Believe it or not? Here they are though and it's certainly worth reading about them. No doubt readers will have their own worthwhile contributions to graphic styles missing from the book. Mine would be: Champion Papers 'Imagination' paper sample books, Twen magazine (the very influential German title) Blue Note record covers, Pentagram, Photolettering Inc and the USA Today weather maps.
The book is nicely designed but rather text heavy. I would have preferred more illustrations in a book dealing with essentially visual themes and I wish the authors had gone to the trouble of including, where practical, a suggested book at the end of each entry. There is a bibliography in the back with titles that have a generalised overview of the subject. The word conceit in the title blurb is very apposite because the book has its own conceit: finger tabs in a book of 336 pages.... Read more ›
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I picked up this book at a bookstore on a bit of a whim. I hadn't looked at it much when I purchased it but when I got home and dove in, I was very pleased!
The book is an alphabetical listing of styles and design movements from victorian to today (and maybe a few further back in time). The information written about each movement/style is concise but more than enough to give you a the context you need.
The articles are short enough that this book would be a great bathroom book for your studio or even just to read one-a-day. Keep it close to your desk cause it is a very accessible reference book. Looking up stuff on the fly is easy.
I think this is a must have for anyone who wants to be informed. By knowing about style, you can use styles smartly in graphic design and the stylings will actually function as content, augmenting the messages you're trying to communicate.
The book is an alphabetical listing of styles and design movements from victorian to today (and maybe a few further back in time). The information written about each movement/style is concise but more than enough to give you a the context you need.
The articles are short enough that this book would be a great bathroom book for your studio or even just to read one-a-day. Keep it close to your desk cause it is a very accessible reference book. Looking up stuff on the fly is easy.
I think this is a must have for anyone who wants to be informed. By knowing about style, you can use styles smartly in graphic design and the stylings will actually function as content, augmenting the messages you're trying to communicate.
By owl love
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a great book written to give an accumulation of histories of different styles of art. This is perfect for the aspiring designer who wants to look to the past to see how specific styles were created and what they focused on. I've used it for a project about Push Pin Studio's style and it helped me further understand their love for textures and crazy typefaces.
Format:Paperback
I recomend style pedia for simple views. If you need to study inside the design moviments, this book help you in view styles, but not to know lot about styles.
I recomend to everyone. =)
I recomend to everyone. =)
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
this book gives uncommon histories of graphic elements such as "screaming type" and "show-card". very helpful in terms of usage and idea generation. I highly recommend this book.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I never got this, and only received a refund. I needed this for my class. How are you going to sell something to someone and then give them there money back and say sorry. What happened to effectiveness and making a customer happy. I wanted this product not my money. If I wanted to see my money take a trip and come back home I would have withdrawn it my self and then gone around the corner and deposited it back.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By lyoung
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Can't go wrong with Steven Heller. He works with other good writers to produce work that is insightful and reflective of current trends in design.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By E. Brenner
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I love this book! As a graphic designer, I appreciate both the content and the design. It is also a better reference book than I expected it to be. Even the most learned art history student will probably learn something new.
It an interesting size as well which was kind of refreshing.
It an interesting size as well which was kind of refreshing.
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 14
books:
See all 14 books this book cites
- The New Typography: (A Centennial Book) (Weimar and Now: German Cultural Criticism) by Jan Tschichold on page 215, and page 217
- Peter Pan: A Storyteller Book by J. M. Barrie on page 315
- Santa Claus and His Works by George P. Webster on page 79
- Printing Types: An Introduction by Alexander S. Lawson on page 223
- Mutt and Jeff by H. C. Fisher on page 310
See all 14 books this book cites
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