Product Description

"John Maeda deconstructs the digital world with the earned authority of an M.I.T.-trained computer scientist and a card-carrying artist. Being ambidextrous with Eastern and Western cultures, he can see things most of us overlook. The result is a humor and expression that brings out the best in computers and art."--Nicholas Negroponte

John Maeda is one of the world's leading experimental graphic designers and is quickly becoming a digital culture icon. His early preoccupation with the intersection of computer programming and digital art has resulted in a fascinating, interactive, and stunningly beautiful collection of work. Maeda has pioneered many of the key expressive elements that are prevalent on the web today. Among his most well-known works are The Reactive Square, which features a simple black square on a computer screen that changes shape if one yells at it, and Time Paint, in which paint flies across the screen. He has created innovative, interactive calendars, digital services, and advertisements for companies such as Sony, Shiseido, and Absolut Vodka.

This is the first publication to present a complete overview of Maeda's work and philosophy. A glorious visual exploration of ideas and graphic form, Maeda @ Media takes you through Maeda's beginnings in early computerized printouts, to his reactive graphics on CD-ROM, to his dynamic experiments on the web, to his pedagogical approach to digital visual art, and finally to his overarching quest to understand the very nature of the relationship between technology and creativity. Six thematic chapters provide an overview of his entire career and research. But this is not just a catalog of older work: interspersed between each chapter is a new visual essay that has been created exclusively for this publication to underline each of the major themes.

Coming together in a massive 480 pages, printed in a dazzling array of color combinations on three different kinds of paper, the result is a manifesto, a finely crafted manual and inspiration sourcebook all in one.

With over 1000 illustrations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #194447 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-08
• Released on: 2001-09-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

Review
"John Maeda deconstructs the digital world with the earned authority of an M.I.T.-trained computer scientist and a card-carrying artist. Being ambidextrous with Eastern and Western cultures, he can see things most of us overlook. The result is a humor and expression that brings out the best in computers and art."--Nicholas Negroponte
-- Review

Review

About the Author
John Maeda is Sony Career Development Professor of Media Arts and Sciences and Director of the Aesthetics and Computation Group at the M.I.T. Media Lab. His media work and emerging philosophy have been profiled in the New York Times, Print, I.D., and numerous other publications worldwide. He is the recipient of the 1999 DaimlerChrysler Design Award for his contributions to visual culture and author of Design by Numbers, an introductory text in computer science for the mathematically challenged.

Nicholas Negroponte is Director of the M.I.T. Media Lab and author of the best-seller Being Digital.

Customer Reviews

Exquisite, and if it's a bit bloated we'll let that pass
I have nothing but respect for John Maeda.

He's one of those rare people who stands at the cusp of three or four disciplines - say graphic design, programming, information architecture, and fine art - and exerts a gentle gravitational attraction on the long-sundered fields. He's a true practitioner of what E.O. Wilson calls "consilience," and I find his work unfailingly beautiful.

"Maeda@Media" is a far more comprehensive introduction to and summary of his work than his earlier ""Design by Numbers." It is also an exquisitely produced volume, and if it is occasionally self-indulgent (spending 60-odd pages on a graphic that spells out "IT IS CUSTOMARY THAT THE SIDES OF A PAGE BE NEGLECTED IN FAVOR OF ITS FRONT AND BACK" on their edges) - well, I'll forgive that. It's a gorgeous tome.

Maeda is doing vital and inspiring work; this book should be a kick in the pants to all those of us who work in any of the disparate fields his work touches upon: only connect.

A Monument to Information Society
I have always been impressed with John Maeda's work: "Tap, Type, Write" is beautifully interactive, "Design By Numbers" is extremely innovative. Professor Maeda's newest endeavor, Maeda@Media is no different. It is a monument to Information Aesthetics and an icon for Information Society at large. The book itself, is painstakenly crafted with different types of papers. The images inside evoke a million poignant words. Professor Maeda's insights are invaluable. John Maeda uncovers a rare beauty in computing.

Very Inspirational ...
I have some programming skills and a budding web designer. I was really impressed with this body of work, especially considering the time frame it covers. The value for me was that the reader gets an understanding of what the "artist" has rendered. You you have read any of Paul Rand's essays, you can identify the significance of this work. This book is not a quick read, but a meal of ideas to be savored. I am still savoring this book, and it is really one of the best books I have enjoyed.

Thanks!