Product Description

How do designers get ideas? Many spend their time searching for clever combinations of forms, fonts, and colors inside the design annuals and monographs of other designers' work. For those looking to challenge the cut-and-paste mentality there are few resources that are both informative and inspirational. In Graphic Design: The New Basics, Ellen Lupton, best-selling author of such books as Thinking with Type and Design It Yourself, and design educator Jennifer Cole Phillips refocus design instruction on the study of the fundamentals of form in a critical, rigorous way informed by contemporary media, theory, and software systems.

Through visual demonstrations and concise commentary, The New Basics shows students and professionals how to build interest and complexity around simple relationships between formal elements of two-dimensional design such as point, line, plane, scale, hierarchy, layers, and transparency. The New Basics explains the key concepts of visual language that inform any work of design from a logo or letterhead to a complex web site. It takes a fresh approach to design instruction by emphasizing visually intensive, form-based thinking in a manner that is in tune with the latest developments in contemporary media, theory, art, and technology. Colorful, compact, and clearly written, The New Basics is the new indispensable resource for anyone seeking a smart, inspiring introduction to graphic design and destined to become the standard reference work in design education.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9705 in Books
• Published on: 2008-03-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 248 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781568987026
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"Explains the key concepts that inform design work, including point, line, plane, scale, hierarchy, layers and transparency." --How, December, 2008

"I highly recommend this book as an addition to your personal design library. Whether you are a seasoned design professional or someone just interested in learning more, it serves as a fantastic and succinct resource for the fundamentals of good design." --Motionographer, 4,17,2008

"This site (and corresponding book) is a great way for students and new designers to learn the basic rules of design. This is the stuff I wish my teachers taught me more of." --Greyscalegorilla, 4,17,2008

Warning: Ellen Lupton's books will make you want to be a graphic designer. Like her two previous efforts (D.I.Y. and D.I.Y. Kids), this book inspires thoughts of career change, or, at the very least, creating your own visual language. Featuring lots of work from Lupton's and Phillips's MICA students, it's also something of a calling card for the school. -- Baltimore Magazine, June 1, 2008

Review
This guide for students and professionals refocuses design instruction on the study of the fundamentals of form, informed by contemporary media, theory, and software systems. Through visual demonstrations and concise commentary, the book shows how to build interest and complexity around simple relationships between formal elements of two-dimensional design, and explains key concepts of visual language that inform any work of design, from a logo to a web site.

Through visual demonstrations and concise commentary, the book shows how to build interest and complexity around simple relationships between formal elements of two-dimensional design, and explains key concepts of visual language that inform any work of design, from a logo to a web site.

Review
Design On The Verge; Diva Of D.I.Y.

"With her tousled blond hair, cheery demeanor and casual clothes, the 44-year-old Lupton looks barely older than her students. As she passes one on campus, he fixes on the book she's holding, 'Graphic Design: The New Basics.'

'Is that the only copy?' he asks excitedly.

Indeed it is. Scheduled to come out in May, Lupton says she hopes it will become the definitive textbook for the next ten years.' " -- Lisa Simeone

Customer Reviews

Great book for the non-graphic designer
This book is a great overview for the vocabularies of print design. Technically, I am an illustration student, but I have been taking graphic design courses at my school. That being said, alot of the stuff being covered here would fall under the basic design courses at my school: Design 1 and Design 2. The information in this book ( I've read 2/3 so far) covers basic compositional structures, hue/ value/ saturation, and other good fundamentals, but doesn't give you more than a paragraph. This is a GREAT coffee table book to give you ideas on your current project, but it is by no means textbook-grade learning for graphic design. It simply does not go into enough depth in order to become a great learning tool. I just wish there were more professional examples rather than student-created ones.

Finally, a current book on graphic design
When Ellen Lupton released her wonderful book, "Thinking with Type," I adopted as a required text for my college typography course. Not only did I admire the thinking behind the writing and structure, but my students LOVED the book.

When I learned about this new book written with Jennifer Cole Phillips I pre-ordered it immediately. Now that I've read it, I'm thrilled with their effort and am eager to use it as the text in my Graphic Design 1 class.

This book provides current examples that both illustrate classic principles of Graphic Design and explore the edges of current design thinking. I appreciate the use of student examples rather than just using professional, commercial work. There are plenty of annual reviews of commercial work by publishing houses such as Rockport. The student work tends to take more risks and be more provocative. It will provide more room for discussion, debate and inspiration in a classroom setting.

While not extensive, the text in the book is concise and well-written. Paired with the bountiful examples, it makes the subject accessible to graphic design students or to anyone interested in learning more about design on their own.

The book introduces enough about typography to whet one's appetite for more (check out "Thinking with Type" for that) and introduces basics about Motion Graphics ("Moving Type" by Matt Woolman was and still is great for learning more - it is out of print now but still relevant if you can find it.)

Princeton Architectural Press should be commended for producing such a quality book at such and affordable price.

Required reading for students and teachers of design
If you're at all interested in design education--either as a teacher or as a student--Graphic Design: The New Basics is required reading. Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips have made something more than a mere textbook; they've created an authoritative and thorough yet useful and inspiring companion for the successful practice of graphic design. I'm confident that I will happily revisit this book again and again during my never-ending journey as a student and teacher.

I wrote a much longer review here:
http://motionographer.com/2008/05/14/book-review-graphic-design-the-new-basics/