Wordless Diagrams [Hardcover]

Nigel Holmes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 24, 2005

Award-winning illustrator and graphic designer Nigel Holmes depicts the things we do every day like you've never seen them before.

Pruning a rose or building a sandcastle might seem like common activities, but when you see them visualized on paper in wordless, step-by-step diagrams, you'll discover them anew. From how to tie a knot in a cherry stem with your tongue to how to make a grilled cheese sandwich, from how to carve a turkey to how to change a diaper, Nigel Holmes's striking diagrams will entertain and educate. Wordless Diagrams will win you over without saying a word.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nigel Holmes was the graphics director of Time magazine for 16 years. He has done graphic explanations for the BBC, the Ford Motor Company, American Express, and a number of other companies. His work has appeared in many magazines, including Esquire, the New Yorker, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times. He lives in Connecticut.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (March 24, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582345228
• ISBN-13: 978-1582345222
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #184,553 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nigel Holmes (born 1942) grew up in England, and moved to the US in 1978 to work at Time Magazine. When he left in 1994 he was the graphics director, and had written three books about graphic design. (They're out of print now, but Amazon usually has second-hand copies.) Other books include Wordless Diagrams (2005) and Nigel Holmes on Information Design (2006), by Steven Heller. His latest book Pinhole and the Expedition to the Jungle is for children of about 11 or 12.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining form of design education, September 7, 2005

By 

Jeff Fisher "Engineer of Creative Identity" (Portland OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Wordless Diagrams (Hardcover)

I've been a fan of the work of designer Nigel Holmes, the former Graphics Director for Time magazine and principal of the firm Explanation Graphics, for many years. His 1985 book "Designing Pictorial Symbols" was very helpful in teaching me, early in my career, to distill concepts down to their simplest forms. With his newest book, "Wordless Diagrams" from Bloomsbury Publishing, Holmes continues the entertaining form of education for which he is known through his publications and public speaking engagements. While not directly related to the practice of identity design, this volume is an excellent creative concepting tool for any designer interested in the creation of logos. Actually, any designer could benefit from the included lessons - and have a few chuckles in the process. The book reinforces the old K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid) principle of design I learned in college three decades ago. In simple graphic forms, chronologically numbered for ease of use, Holmes clearly illustrates nearly 100 tasks such as how to wave like a Royal, how to make a snowman, how to pierce a tongue, and how to cremate a body. In addition, readers will also learn how to milk a cow, pour a beer and keep a low-cut dress in place as they are taken on this wordless, visual adventure. "How to train for and then eat 53 1/2 hot dogs" immediately reminded me of the lesson in simplicity, visually and verbally conveyed by Holmes, in a past HOW Design Conference presentation: "Always line up your sausages." - Jeff Fisher, "Logo Notions" column, CreativeLatitude.com

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great conversation starter, March 29, 2005

By 

C. Houser (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Wordless Diagrams (Hardcover)

Hilarious actions diagrammed with simple but technical precision, such as how to curtsy and how to do the queen's wave - from the carriage, no less! It's a great conversation starter in my living room and everytime I pick it up I notice something new.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good, April 25, 2006

By 

andrei (milwaukee) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wordless Diagrams (Hardcover)

I guess some of you had hard time figuring out one of those instruction manuals without any pictures, something like "connect the supplied cord with three yellow and 1 green connectors to the rear port of the front panel on your VCR, while pushing middle round button on the left side of the right operational panel..." and so on. Don't you hate it? This book is not an attempt to explain you how to operate your washing machine or VCR. It's a good collection of "instructional manual" illustrations, which don't require any words. Almost all of the illustrations are "manuals" how to: "to propose", "to lasso a steer", "to parallel park your car", "to fold a T-shirt", and 154 of others.
I would recommend this book as a fun read and a good present, although i found it very inspirational.
also you might find useful a similar book "Open Here: The Art of Instructional Design" ISBN: 1556709625.