Media

Jessica Helfand|Essays

An Instrument of Sufficiently Lucid Cogitation

The legendary French photojournalist Henri Cartier-Bresson, who died on Tuesday at his home in the South of France, always carried a sketchbook with him. Today's obituary in The New York Times alleges that he described drawing as …

Rick Poynor|Essays

Britain and America: United in Idiocy

What do Brits and Americans think of each other? In Us & Them, a book by the satirical British illustrator Paul Davis, the two countries have one thing in common: they are both equally stupid. That’s not saying much.

Michael Bierut|Essays

The Bodoni Conspiracy

Eerie parallels between the cover designs of the reports of the 9/11 Commission and the Monicagate investigator Kenneth Starr suggest a conspiracy that can be traced back to sixteenth-century type designer Giambattista Bodoni.

Jessica Helfand|Essays

Graphic Design: The Movie

Above Left: Paul Rand, No Way Out, 1950; Right, production still from The Manchurian Candidate, 2004.Some time ago, I pondered about the future of graphic design as a reality show, but recently I've become convinced that its real future …

Michael Bierut|Essays

Pablo Ferro Offers You His Protection

The title design for the film Napoleon Dynamite, credited to Pablo Ferro [although designed in fact by actor Aaron Ruell], provoke an assessment of Ferro's influence in the world of motion graphics.

Michael Bierut|Essays

To Hell with the Simple Paper Clip

Answering the question "What's your favorite designed object?" with something humble and anonymous may be a tiresome cliche, but it's one that resonates with editors of the New York Times Magazine and curators at the Museum of Modern Art.

William Drenttel|Essays

Posted Without Comment

Jessica Helfand and I were recently in Portland, Maine participating in a symposium and workshop at the Maine College of Art. During our stay, we witnessed the launch of the redesign of the Portland Press Herald. This letter, in response …

Rick Poynor|Essays

Where are the Design Intellectuals?

Prospect magazine has published a list of the 100 top British public intellectuals. A handful of visual art and architecture people make the cut, but no from design is included, reflecting its absence from public debate.

Jessica Helfand|Essays

Designer by Day, Catwoman by Night

In the upcoming July release of the new movie, Catwoman, Halle Berry plays the title Jekyll-and-Hyde role, whose character is split between a shy, retiring graphic designer and an untamed, feline superhero. Naturally, the superhero is sexy …

Michael Bierut|Essays

McSweeney's No. 13 and the Revenge of the Nerds

McSweeney's No. 13, published by Dave Eggers and guest edited by Chris Ware, is a masterwork of publication design and an invaluable survey of today's best comic artists and graphic novelists.

William Drenttel|Essays

Learning from Las Vegas: The Book That (Still) Takes My Breath Away

Why did its authors hate the design of Learning from Las Vegas so much?

Jessica Helfand|Essays

Time Waits for No Fan

I am, in principle, morally opposed to hero worship, but I'd like to announce that in my next life, I'd like to be Nigella Lawson. Like me, Nigella is a mother of two, a boy and a girl, and she is Jewish. She is my age. She is also …