Theory + Criticism

Rick Poynor|Essays

What Does Critical Writing Look Like?

A report on work by the first graduates from the Royal College of Art’s Critical Writing in Art & Design MA.

Rick Poynor|Essays

The Writings of William Drenttel

Essays from the Design Observer archive show the wide scope of William Drenttel's interests and concerns.

Michael Bierut|Essays

Style: An Inventory

Style: An Inventory by Michael Bierut

Alexandra Lange|Essays

Bad Taste True Confessions: Erté

True confessions about my own bad taste. I loved Erté. Did you?

Rick Poynor|Exposure

Exposure: Untitled Film Still #21 by Cindy Sherman

The photographer as performer

Rick Poynor|Essays

A Dictionary of Surrealism and the Graphic Image

An alphabetical guide to graphic designers influenced by Surrealism and to some key Surrealist concepts.

Rick Poynor|Essays

In Response to An Anatomy of Uncriticism

Alexandra Lange’s article in Print about the sacred cows of graphic design sidesteps the issue it raises.

Alexandra Lange|Essays

The Women

While Manohla Dargis rants about the lack of women in charge in Hollywood save for Nancy Meyers, Zaha Hadid similarly represents the dirth of women in architecture.

Alexandra Lange|Essays

Making A List...

The New Yorker has a rather expansive round-up of lists online and I particularly like Judith Thurman’s memorable fashion statements of 2009.

Alexandra Lange|Essays

Paper Revelations

Reading a lot of architecture criticism for those same classes, I also start to develop a running mental list of the writerly tics of critics like Paul Goldberger.

Mark Lamster|Essays

Ron Arad at MoMA

I'm not sold on Arad as an architect, but his material experimentation is certainly admirable

Mark Lamster|Essays

Delayed Gratification: On Architectural Criticism

Caught up in the formal design aspects of a building, critics like Nicolai Ouroussoff overlook the social context.