The Design Observer Twenty





2015 | 50 Covers Selections

2011-2017 Winners
2017 Books
2017 Covers
2016 Books
2016 Covers
2015 Books
2015 Covers
2014 Books
2014 Covers
2013 Books
2013 Covers
2012 Books
2012 Covers
2011 Books
2011 Covers

AIGA Archives
A Manual for Cleaning Women
A Manual for Cleaning Women
AUTHOR: Lucia Berlin
PUBLISHER: Picador - Pan Macmillan
ART DIRECTOR: James Annal
DESIGNER: Justine Anweiler
DESIGN FIRM: Picador Art Department


A nakonec Vánoce
A nakonec Vánoce
AUTHOR: Petr Šabach
PUBLISHER: Paseka
ART DIRECTOR: Jan Šabach
DESIGNER: Jan Šabach
DESIGN FIRM: Code Switch


Act of God
Act of God
AUTHOR: Jill Ciment
PUBLISHER: Pantheon Books
ART DIRECTOR: Kelly Blair
DESIGNER: Janet Hansen


All the Bright Places
All the Bright Places
AUTHOR: Jennifer Niven
PUBLISHER: Random House Children's Books | Knopf
DESIGNER: Alison Impey and Lucy Kim


Anthropology's Politics
Anthropology's Politics
AUTHOR: Lara Deeb and Jessica Winegar
PUBLISHER: Stanford University Press
ART DIRECTOR: Rob Ehle
DESIGNER: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein
DESIGN FIRM: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein


Ball
Ball
AUTHOR: Tara Ison
PUBLISHER: Soft Skull Press
ART DIRECTOR: Kelly Winton
DESIGNER: Kelly Winton


Barbara the Slut and Other People
Barbara the Slut and Other People
AUTHOR: Lauren Holmes
PUBLISHER: Riverhead | Penguin Random House
ART DIRECTOR: Helen Yentus
DESIGNER: Rachel Willey


Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial
Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial
AUTHOR: Ellen Lupton and Andrea Lipps
PUBLISHER: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
ART DIRECTOR: Kimberly Varella and Pamela Horn
DESIGNER: Kimberly Varella
DESIGN FIRM: Content Object Design Studio


Becoming a Marihuana User
Becoming a Marihuana User
AUTHOR: Howard S. Becker
PUBLISHER: The University of Chicago Press
ART DIRECTOR: Jill Shimabukuro
DESIGNER: Jill Shimabukuro
DESIGN FIRM: The University of Chicago Press


Beneath the Surface of White Supremacy
Beneath the Surface of White Supremacy
AUTHOR: Moon-Kie Jung
PUBLISHER: Stanford University Press
ART DIRECTOR: Rob Ehle
DESIGNER: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein
DESIGN FIRM: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein


Between You & Me
Between You & Me
AUTHOR: Mary Norris
PUBLISHER: W. W. Norton and Company
ART DIRECTOR: Ingsu Liu
DESIGNER: Darren Haggar
DESIGN FIRM: Darren Haggar Design


Cassandre. Specimens.
Cassandre. Specimens.
AUTHOR: Pascal Béjean
PUBLISHER: Art Book Magazine Éditions
ART DIRECTOR: Pascal Béjean
DESIGNER: Pascal Béjean
DESIGN FIRM: ABM Studio


Composite Landscapes: Photomontage and Landscape Architecture
Composite Landscapes: Photomontage and Landscape Architecture
AUTHOR: Charles Waldheim, and Andrea Hansen, editors
PUBLISHER: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Hatje Cantz
DESIGNER: Siena Scarff, Cover
DESIGN FIRM: Siena Scarff Design


Conviction
Conviction
AUTHOR: Kelly Loy Gilbert
PUBLISHER: Disney Hyperion
ART DIRECTOR: Maria Elias
DESIGNER: Maria Elias


Debate
Debate
AUTHOR: MAS Context
PUBLISHER: MAS Context
ART DIRECTOR: Alisa Wolfson
DESIGNER: Peter Ty, Eavan Wallner, and Alisa Wolfson.
DESIGN FIRM: Leo Burnett Department of Design


Drinking In America
Drinking In America
AUTHOR: Susan Cheever
PUBLISHER: Grand Central Publishing
ART DIRECTOR: Catherine Casalino
DESIGNER: Rex Bonomelli


F*ck Feelings
F*ck Feelings
AUTHOR: Michael I. Bennett & Sarah Bennett
PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster
ART DIRECTOR: Jackie Seow
DESIGNER: Jason Heuer
DESIGN FIRM: Jason Heuer Design


Flaubert Postsecular
Flaubert Postsecular
AUTHOR: Barbara Vinken
PUBLISHER: Stanford University Press
ART DIRECTOR: Rob Ehle
DESIGNER: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein
DESIGN FIRM: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein


Gorse No. 3 & Gorse No. 4
Gorse No. 3 & Gorse No. 4
AUTHOR: Susan Tomaselli (ed)
PUBLISHER: Gorse
ART DIRECTOR: Niall McCormack
DESIGNER: Niall McCormack
DESIGN FIRM: Hi Tone Design


Graphic Designers Surveyed
Graphic Designers Surveyed
AUTHOR: Editors: Lucienne Roberts, Rebecca Wright, Jessie Price
PUBLISHER: GraphicDesign&
ART DIRECTOR: Lucienne Roberts
DESIGNER: Lucienne Roberts, John McGill, Sarah Schrauwen
DESIGN FIRM: LucienneRoberts+


Green: A Field Guide to Marijuana
Green: A Field Guide to Marijuana
AUTHOR: Dan Michaels
PUBLISHER: Chronicle Books
ART DIRECTOR: Eddie Opara and Neil Egan
DESIGNER: Eddie Opara, Brankica Harvey, and Yo-E Ryou
DESIGN FIRM: Pentagram


LEAP Dialogues: Career Pathways in Design for Social Innovation
LEAP Dialogues: Career Pathways in Design for Social Innovation
AUTHOR: Edited by Mariana Amatullo with Bryan Boyer, Liz Danzico and Andrew Shea
PUBLISHER: Designmatters at ArtCenter College of Design
ART DIRECTOR: Lupi Asensio & Martin Lorenz
DESIGNER: Lupi Asensio & Martin Lorenz
DESIGN FIRM: TwoPoints.Net — Hamburg, Berlin, Barcelona


Making Marie Curie
Making Marie Curie
AUTHOR: Eva Hemmungs Wirtén
PUBLISHER: The University of Chicago Press
ART DIRECTOR: Jill Shimabukuro
DESIGNER: Lauren Michelle Smith
DESIGN FIRM: The University of Chicago Press


Mário Pedrosa
Mário Pedrosa
AUTHOR: Mário Pedrosa
PUBLISHER: Cosac Naify
ART DIRECTOR: Elaine Ramos
DESIGNER: Paulo André Chagas
DESIGN FIRM: Cosac Naify


Off the Radar
Off the Radar
AUTHOR: Cyrus Copeland
PUBLISHER: Blue Rider Press | Penguin Random House
ART DIRECTOR: Jason Booher
DESIGNER: AJ Dimarucot


Once in a House on Fire
Once in a House on Fire
AUTHOR: Andrea Ashworth
PUBLISHER: Picador - Pan Macmillan
ART DIRECTOR: James Annal
DESIGNER: Justine Anweiler
DESIGN FIRM: Picador Art Department


One Day in the Life of the English Language: A Microcosmic Usage Handbook
One Day in the Life of the English Language: A Microcosmic Usage Handbook
AUTHOR: Frank L. Cioffi
PUBLISHER: Princeton University Press
DESIGNER: Chris Ferrante


Only What's Necessary: Charles M. Schulz and the Art of Peanuts
Only What's Necessary: Charles M. Schulz and the Art of Peanuts
AUTHOR: Chip Kidd
PUBLISHER: Abrams
ART DIRECTOR: Chip Kidd
DESIGNER: Chip Kidd
DESIGN FIRM: Chip Kidddesign


Oreo
Oreo
AUTHOR: Fran Ross
PUBLISHER: New Directions
ART DIRECTOR: Erik Rieselbach
DESIGNER: Erik Carter
DESIGN FIRM: Erik Carter


Patternalia
Patternalia
AUTHOR: Jude Stewart
PUBLISHER: Bloomsbury USA
ART DIRECTOR: Patti Ratchford
DESIGNER: Oliver Munday
DESIGN FIRM: Bloomsbury


Plays by Albert Camus Series
Plays by Albert Camus Series
AUTHOR: Albert Camus
PUBLISHER: Can
DESIGNER: Utku Lomlu
DESIGN FIRM: LOM Creative


Posters for Peace: Visual Rhetoric & Civic Action
Posters for Peace: Visual Rhetoric & Civic Action
AUTHOR: Thomas W. Benson
PUBLISHER: Penn State University Press
ART DIRECTOR: Jennifer Norton, Brad D. Norr
DESIGNER: Brad D. Norr
DESIGN FIRM: Brad Norr Design


Puddn'head Wilson | The Prince and the Pauper
Puddn'head Wilson | The Prince and the Pauper
AUTHOR: Mark Twain
PUBLISHER: Vintage
ART DIRECTOR: Megan Wilson
DESIGNER: Isabel Urbina Peña


Seline Baumgartner
Seline Baumgartner
AUTHOR: Claudia La Rocco
PUBLISHER: Edizioni Periferia
ART DIRECTOR: Philipp Hubert, Sebastian Fischer
DESIGNER: Philipp Hubert, Sebastian Fischer
DESIGN FIRM: Hubert & Fischer


Shinkichi Tajiri Universal Paradoxes
Shinkichi Tajiri Universal Paradoxes
AUTHOR: Helen Westgeest, Giotta and Ryu Tajiri
PUBLISHER: Leiden University press
ART DIRECTOR: Willem Henri Lucas
DESIGNER: Willem henri Lucas


Spring Chicken
Spring Chicken
AUTHOR: Bill Gifford
PUBLISHER: Grand Central Publishing
ART DIRECTOR: Elizabeth Connor
DESIGNER: Oliver Munday


Ten Children Ms. Ming Never Had (Bayan Ming'in Hiç Olmayan 10 Çocuğu
Ten Children Ms. Ming Never Had (Bayan Ming'in Hiç Olmayan 10 Çocuğu
AUTHOR: Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt
PUBLISHER: Doğan Egmont Publishing
DESIGNER: Geray Gencer
DESIGN FIRM: Studio Geray Gencer


The Asylum
The Asylum
AUTHOR: Simon Doonan
PUBLISHER: Blue Rider Press | Penguin Random House
ART DIRECTOR: Jason Booher
DESIGNER: Spencer Kimble


The Last Word
The Last Word
AUTHOR: Hanif Kureishi
PUBLISHER: Scribner
ART DIRECTOR: Jaya Miceli
DESIGNER: Jaya Miceli


The Life and Death of Sophie Stark
The Life and Death of Sophie Stark
AUTHOR: Anna North
PUBLISHER: Blue Rider Press | Penguin Random House
ART DIRECTOR: Jason Booher
DESIGNER: Spencer Kimble


The Race for Paris
The Race for Paris
AUTHOR: Meg Waite Clayton
PUBLISHER: HarperCollins
ART DIRECTOR: Gregg Kulick
DESIGNER: Alison Forner
DESIGN FIRM: HarperCollins


The Reader / Momentum 8 Tunnel Vision / Nordic Biennial for Contemporary Art
The Reader / Momentum 8 Tunnel Vision / Nordic Biennial for Contemporary Art
AUTHOR: Jonatan Habib Engquist, Birta Gudjonsdottir, Stefanie Hessler, Toke Lykkeberg
PUBLISHER: Mousse Publishing
ART DIRECTOR: Ariane Spanier
DESIGNER: Ariane Spanier
DESIGN FIRM: Ariane Spanier Design


The Sage of Waterloo
The Sage of Waterloo
AUTHOR: Leona Francombe
PUBLISHER: W. W. Norton and Company
ART DIRECTOR: Ingsu Liu
DESIGNER: Charlotte Strick
DESIGN FIRM: Strick & Williams


The Typewriter: a Graphic History of the Beloved Machine
The Typewriter: a Graphic History of the Beloved Machine
AUTHOR: Janine Vangool
PUBLISHER: UPPERCASE publishing inc
ART DIRECTOR: Janine Vangool
DESIGNER: Janine Vangool


The Woman Who Read Too Much
The Woman Who Read Too Much
AUTHOR: Bahiyyih Nakhjavani
PUBLISHER: Stanford University Press
ART DIRECTOR: Rob Ehle
DESIGNER: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein
DESIGN FIRM: Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein


Uma História do Mundo (A History of the World)
Uma História do Mundo (A History of the World)
AUTHOR: Andrew Marr
PUBLISHER: Intrínseca
DESIGNER: Angelo Allevato Bottino


Unbecoming
Unbecoming
AUTHOR: Rebecca Scherm
PUBLISHER: Viking | Penguin Random House
DESIGNER: Paul Buckley


Voices in the Night
Voices in the Night
AUTHOR: Steven Millhauser
PUBLISHER: Alfred A. Knopf
ART DIRECTOR: Carol Carson
DESIGNER: Janet Hansen


What is This
What is This
AUTHOR: Tamara Shopsin
PUBLISHER: The Ice Plant
ART DIRECTOR: Tamara Shopsin
DESIGNER: Tamara Shopsin
DESIGN FIRM: Tamara Shopsin


X
X
AUTHOR: Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon
PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press
ART DIRECTOR: Chris Paul
DESIGNER: Matt Roeser





Observed


COLLINS co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Brian Collins and co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Leland Maschmeyer will speak on branding and creativity at OFFF Barcelona this weekend.

“I can’t imagine any person with a background in graphic design made that thing without a committee of bland politicians sanding away its edges until they felt safe enough to unveil that to the public.” Behold: Logogate!

Black designers, curators, and more.

How do you stop deep-sea trawlers from harming ecosystems? Commission 10-ton marble sculptures and place them on the ocean floor, of course.

For ten years, Matt Needle has reimagined every best picture award nominee by redesigning their posters.

Coca-Cola...and art?

Don Norman‘s new book—Design for a Better World: Meaningful, Sustainable, Humanity Centered—is out March 21, from MIT Press. (Watch him discussing twenty-first century design on Youtube!)

Can design be a way to say “be careful”?

While Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ is on loan, the Mauritshuis showcases 170 imaginative renditions in its place.

David Lance Goines, who “adamantly rejected the title of artist” has died. The iconic poster designer was 77.

Now you can get a Masters degree in graphic design—online!

How much do you know about “Swissness” legislation? The case of the Toblerone rebrand!

Oh, Brother (ly love)! Philadelphia needs a new ... flag?

Parisian opera house that inspired ‘Phantom of the Opera’ becomes an airbnb.

A new episode of Print Is Dead. (Long Live Print!) is out for your weekend listening pleasure. On this episode George Gendron visits with the creators of the 1980s-90s interior design juggernaut — Met Home — editor Dorothy Kalins and designer Don Morris. [BV]

Celebrate the launch of Dean of Design at OCAD Dori Tunstall‘s new book, Decolonizing Design, out now from MIT Press with a launch party and conversation between Dori and Holly Harriel, Director of the MIT CoLab. [BV]

On design—and dogma. [JH]

When beauty meets grief. [JH]

Design and disability: the urban way. [JH]

History—and controversy—at Cooper Union. [JH]

Brian Collins on design clichés. [JH]

The Tate Modern’s “public” viewing area allows museum visitors to look straight into the homes of the residents of a nearby building: interested readers can nerd out on the forty-seven page ruling that explains why a design decision can fall prey to the laws of public nuisance. [JH]

Lou Dorfsman and Al D’Amato’s powerful advertisement from 1962: an appraisal. (Via Natalia Pangaro.) [JH]

Remembering Carin Goldberg. [JH]

Coming soon to The Design Museum in London, an exhibition on design and history—organized by the Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei. [JH]

Will the future of design be collaborative? Figma’s Yuhki Yamashita thinks so. [JH]

Designers and layoffs. [JH]

Proving that America really is in crisis, the US State Department changes its official font to Calibri. Discuss! [JH]

The artist whose book covers distilled the nineteen-eighties. (via Mike Errico) [JH]

Ruth Adler Schnee, one of the more important textile designers of midcentury modernism, dies at 99. [JH]

In Denmark, thinking—and designing—out of the (grey) box. [JH]

Jerald Cooper’s aim is to make architecture and design more accessible by using layman’s language to break down barriers typically set up by white academics with advanced degrees. [JH]

Corn husks were just the start: a Mexican designer in London writes his own rules. [JH]

Wieden+Kennedy London launches standalone branding and design studio—called—NOT Wieden+Kennedy. (Play their logo generator yourself, here.) [JH]

Inclusive design, at Microsoft. [JH]

Best design stories of 2022, from The Guardian. [JH]



Jobs | March 27