By Kelli Anderson

This Book is a Planetarium

Published by Chronicle Books, 2017

Never has humble paper had such radical ambitions. Defying every expectation of what a book can be, this pop-up extravaganza transforms into six fully functional tools: a real working planetarium projecting the constellations, a musical instrument complete with strings for strumming, a geometric drawing generator, an infinite calendar, a message decoder, and even a speaker that amplifies sound. Artist Kelli Anderson contributes enlightening text alongside each pop-up, explaining the scientific principles at play in her constructions and creating an interactive experience that's as educational as it is extraordinary. Inspiring awe that lasts long after the initial pop,This Book Is a Planetarium leaves readers of all ages with a renewed appreciation for the way things work-and for the enduring magic of books.

 

 

By Nicholas Blechman

100% Evil

Published by Princeton Architectural Press, 2005

There's evil in the world. And lots of it. The question is, just what does it look like? A politician? An ex-girlfriend? Your landlord? Your boss? Hanna Arendt said it was banal. The Red Sox think of the Yankees. And in this hilarious, disturbing, quirky, and brilliant little book, noted illustrators Nicholas Blechman and Christoph Niemann present a catalog of their own misanthropic imaginings. As their friendship began, they found themselves spending countless nights together in Brooklyn bars, drawing up images wry, comic, arch, painful to represent the sex affairs and political scandals, acts of terror and acts of war that were the news.This professional work led to a personal passion, and so the illustrators chose to draw a small series on rosier subjects like maps and love. But as the world around them grew darker, they decided to explore the other end of the emotional spectrum and devote themselves to evil. 100% Evil is the result: a thoughtful, comical, and at times joyful book that just goes to show that sometimes it's good to be bad.

 

Night Light

Published by Orchard Books, 2013

1 light, shining bright? A train!

7 lights, flashing red and white? A fire truck!

And so on all the way to ten lights. Part guessing game, part counting book, Night Light is a boldly imagined book for the preschool child who loves cars, trucks, and anything that goes. With die-cuts on every other page, this rhyming story features vehicles and counting, combining a high interest preschool subject with important preschool concepts.

 

 

By Douglas Davis

Creative Strategy and the Business of Design

Published by HOW Books, 2016

The Business Skills Every Creative Needs! Remaining relevant as a creative professional takes more than creativity--you need to understand the language of business. The problem is that design school doesn't teach the strategic language that is now essential to getting your job done. Inside, you'll learn about the business objectives and marketing decisions that drive your creative work.

 

 

By Timothy Goodman

40 Days of Dating

Published by Harry N. Abrams, 2015

When New York–based graphic designers and long-time friends Timothy Goodman and Jessica Walsh found themselves single at the same time, they decided to try an experiment. The old adage says that it takes 40 days to change a habit—could the same be said for love? So they agreed to date each other for 40 days, record their experiences in questionnaires, photographs, videos, texts, and artworks, and post the material on a website they would create for this purpose. What began as a small experiment between two friends became an Internet sensation, drawing 5 million unique visitors from around the globe to their site and their story since it was launched in July 2013. 40 Days of Dating: An Experiment is a beautifully designed, expanded look at the experiment and the results, including a great deal of material that never made it onto the site, such as who they were as friends and individuals before the 40 days and who they have become since.

 

Sharpie Art Workshop

Published by Rockport Publishers, 2015

Designer, artist, and art director Timothy Goodman explores Sharpie writing products, the materials and supplies that can be used to enhance or modify them, and the range of creative techniques and effects that can be achieved. Through a series of examples and exercises, Goodman demonstrates how to make different kinds of marks, patterns, and images on a variety of surfaces. Inspiring works by noted artists from all over the world who use Sharpie in interesting and innovative ways are also included. Sharpie Art Workshop offers ideas and inspiration to anyone who's looking to explore the creative potential of this exciting medium. So when you make your mark, what will you create?

 

 

By Val Head

Designing Interface Animation

Published by Rosenfeld Media, 2016

Effective interface animation deftly combines form and function to improve feedback, aid in orientation, direct attention, show causality, and express your brand’s personality. Designing Interface Animation shows you how to create web animation that balances purpose and style while blending seamlessly into the user’s experience. This book is a crash course in motion design theory and practice for web designers, UX professionals, and front-end developers alike.

 

A Pocket Guide to CSS Animations

Published by Five Simple Steps Publishing Ltd., 2013

CSS animations open up a whole new way to look at and use CSS to bring motion to the web in creative ways. This Pocket Guide is designed to help you jump into using CSS animations in your own projects, providing a strong foundation on which to start experimenting and creating. In this book Val covers the basics of CSS animations, walking you through a series of examples, and discussing practical considerations for dealing with browsers and fallbacks. You'll have everything you need to start playing with CSS animations in just a couple of hours.

 

By Michael Johnson

Branding: In Five and a Half Steps

Published by Thames & Hudson

Johnson strips everyday brands down to their basic components, with case studies that enable us to understand why we select one product or service over another and allow us to comprehend how seemingly subtle influences can affect key life decisions. The first part of the book shows how the birth of a brand begins not with finding a solution but rather with identifying the correct question―the missing gap in the market―to which an answer is needed. Johnson proceeds to unveil hidden elements involved in creating a successful brand―from the strapline that gives the brand a narrative and a purpose to clever uses of typography that unite design and language.

 

Problem Solved: a primer in design and communication

Published by Phaidon Press Ltd., 2012

Designers and advertisers continually have to interpret design briefs, produce new solutions to familiar problems and work to keep their clients' brands high in the public consciousness. This highly informative guide brings together for the first time discussions and case studies that illustrate the working methods of major advertising and graphic design firms. Each chapter explores a different theme of problem solving, and concludes with a case study to illustrate a particular solution in detail. Themes include producing innovative work, avoiding repetition, standing out in the market place, reinventing a tired brand, communicating essential facts in a culture of information overload, keeping a brand young and trendy, dealing sensitively with propaganda, the use of shock tactics, and word-based advertising in a world over-run with images and sound-bites.

 

 

By Paul Sahre

Two-Dimensional Man: A Graphic Memoir

Published by Abrams Press, 2017

Paul Sahre ranks alongside modern-day design heroes Stefan Sagmeister and Chip Kidd as one of the most influential graphic designers of his generation. Two-Dimensional Man is a fresh take on the traditional design monograph: part memoir, part art book, part meditation on creativity. Throughout, Sahre combines poignant personal essays about living creatively with artwork culled from his extraordinary 30-year career. In his revealing stories, Sahre portrays the creative life as one of constant questioning, inventing, failing, dreaming, and—ultimately—making. In Two-Dimensional Man, Sahre documents how moments like these have informed his life as a designer and artist, and proves that humor and meaning can be found anywhere, if you’re only willing to look.

 

Fresh Dialogue 1: New Voices in Graphic Design

Published by Phaidon Press, 2016

The American Institute of Graphic Arts annually asks emerging graphic designers to speak on the future of the discipline. This new series documents these "Fresh Dialogue" presentations, with designers Blechman, Niemann, and Sahre presenting their ideas.

 

Hello World: A Life in Ham Radio

Published by Princeton Architectural Press, 2003

To an outsider, the world of ham radio is one of basement transmitters, clunky microphones, Morse code, and crackly, possibly clandestine, worldwide communications, a world both mysterious and geeky. But the real story is a lot more interesting: indeed, there are more than two million operators worldwide, including people like Walter Cronkite and Priscilla Presley. Gandhi had a ham radio, as do Marlon Brando and Juan Carlos, king of Spain. Hello World takes us on a seventy-year odyssey through the world of ham radio. From 1927 until his death in 2001, operator Jerry Powell transmitted radio signals from his bedroom in Hackensack, New Jersey, touring the worlds most remote locations and communicating with people from Greenland to occupied Japan. This book is both an introduction to the fascinating world of ham and a visual feast for anyone interested in the universal language of graphic design.

 

Leisurama Now: The Beach House for Everyone 1964
Published by Princeton Architectural Press, 2008

Who doesn't dream of owning a second home at the beach? Well, in the early 1960s, it was a snap even for the working class. For as little as $590 down and $73/month, you could walk into Macy’s and  leave with a fully furnished house. In Leisurama, author Paul Sahre uncovers the mystery of this legendary slice of architectural Americana and lovingly documents its forty year history with a treasure trove of text, photographs, historical documentation, and oral histories. In a sweet paradox, these once very affordable homes that were looked down upon by more well to do neighbors are now desirable and expensive, even "collectable." Their rich legacy lives on in the affordable pages of Leisurama.

 

 

By Susan Weinschenk

Neuro Web Design: What Makes Them Click?

Published by New Riders, 2008

A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability

Why do people decide to buy a product online? Register at your Web site? Trust the information you provide? Neuro Web Design applies the research on motivation, decision making, and neuroscience to the design of Web sites. You will learn the unconscious reasons for people’s actions, how emotions affect decisions, and how to apply the principles of persuasion to design Web sites that encourage users to click. Neuro Web Design employs “neuro-marketing” concepts, which are at the intersection of psychology and user experience. It’s scientific, yet you’ll find it accessible, easy to read, and easy to understand. By applying the concepts and examples in this book, you’ll be able to dramatically increase the effectiveness and conversion rates of your own Web site.

 

100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People

Published by New Riders, 2011

We design to elicit responses from people. We want them to buy something, read more, or take action of some kind. Designing without understanding what makes people act the way they do is like exploring a new city without a map: results will be haphazard, confusing, and inefficient. This book combines real science and research with practical examples to deliver a guide every designer needs. With it you’ll be able to design more intuitive and engaging work for print, websites, applications, and products that matches the way people think, work, and play.

 

100 Things Every Presenter Needs to Know About People (Voices That Matter)

Published by New Riders, 2012

Every day around the world millions of presentations are given, with millions of decisions hanging in the balance as a result. Do you know the science behind giving a powerful and persuasive presentation? This book reveals what you need to know about how people listen, how people decide, and how people react so that you can learn to create more engaging presentations. No matter what your current skill level, whether beginner or polished, this book will guide you to the next level, teaching you how to improve your delivery, stance, eye contact, voice, materials, media, message, and call to action.

 

How to Get People to Do Stuff: Master the art and science of persuasion and motivation

Published by New Riders, 2013

We all want people to do stuff. Whether you want your customers to buy from you, vendors to give you a good deal, your employees to take more initiative, or your spouse to make dinner—a large amount of everyday is about getting the people around you to do stuff. Instead of using your usual tactics that sometimes work and sometimes don't, what if you could harness the power of psychology and brain science to motivate people to do the stuff you want them to do - even getting people to want to do the stuff you want them to do. In this book you’ll learn the 7 drives that motivate people: The Desire For Mastery, The Need To Belong, The Power of Stories, Carrots and Sticks, Instincts,  Habits, and Tricks Of The Mind. 

 

100 MORE Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People

Published by New Riders, 2015

This book applies the latest research in psychology, neuroscience, brain research, and social psychology to the design of technology products, including websites, apps, wearables, and artificial intelligence. Weinschenk combines real science and research citations with practical examples to make her 100 MORE Things engaging, persuasive, easy to read, accessible, and useful. 100 MORE Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People is not just another “design guidelines” book because it explains the WHY behind the guidelines, providing concrete examples and prescriptions that can be easily and instantly applied.

 

 

 

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