Graphic Design and Architecture

ronmental graphic design, seminal examples of twentieth-century graphic design arose in our built environment from the cultural, social, and economic climate of their time. Environmental graphic design is a vital part of our visual heritage, appreciated for its practical uses and enjoyed for its decorative appearances. Urban streetscapes. office buildings, museums, convention centers, air- ports. public parks, shopping malls, and entertainment centers all have been transformed by the use of environmental graphic design. This design discipline has evolved not only by its technical improvements but also by its integral relationship over time to art. architecture. and cultural movements.

For example, the meetinghouse signs and identification markers of American Shaker communities; Russian constructivist wall murals lining the streets of Moscow during the Bolshevik Revolution: the great white ways of Times Square. Piccadilly Circus, and the Las Vegas Strip; the festive and celebratory graphics of the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics: the provocative typographic walls of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington. D.C.; and corporate identity and branding of the American marketplace after World War II all responded directly to the social constructs, political upheavals, and economic needs of the times. Additionally, prevailing artistic movements directly influenced and inspired other ground- breaking design benchmarks such as Hector Guimard’s art nouveau entrances to the Paris metro. Otto Wagner’s decorative building fa- cades in Vienna, Edward Johnston’s typography for the London Underground. Peter Behrens’ integration of graphic and architectural form for Allegemein Elektricitdts Gesellschaft (AEG), supergraphics by Barbara Stauffacher Solomon for Sea Ranch, and Robert Venturi’s transformation of the ordinary into the extraordinary by applying decorative imagery to conventional buildings. Innovators

and visionaries such as Frank Lloyd Wright. Georges Claude. Walter Dorwin Teague. Charles Eames. Margaret Calvert. Donald Leigh. Al- vin Lustig. Walt Disney. Paul Rand. Alexander Girard. Dan Reisinger. Deborah Sussman. and Thomas Geismar have all transformed our built environment with innovative and revolutionary graphic design solutions during the course of the twentieth century.

Since environmental graphic design has only recently been recognized as a key discipline within the design professions, little if any documentation of importance, substance, or critical evaluation exists that deals with the history of typography, image, symbol, and visual storytelling in the context of our modern man-made world. The built environment that we experience in our everyday lives continually relies upon graphic design to communicate information and identity, shape our overall perception and memory of a sense of place, and ultimately enliven, enrich, and humanize our lives.

Graphic Design and Architecture: A 20th-Century History is the first historical overview of twentieth-century graphic design in the built environment. It provides the reader with an invaluable and comprehensive reference of visual and narrative material that illustrates and evaluates this unique and important history. This volume examines the relationship between typography, image, symbol, and visual storytelling in the modern world by exploring principal themes, major technical developments, important manufacturers, and pioneering designers over the last one hundred years. Unlike many recently published titles that focus primarily on isolated contemporary projects. Graphic Design and Architecture places the unique marriage of graphic design and architecture in the context of artistic, social, and cultural movements and influences of the twentieth century. This writer hopes that the reader, in looking back, can derive inspiration and insight into looking forward.

Book Details

• Title: Graphic Design and Architecture, A 20th Century History: A Guide to Type, Image, Symbol, and Visual Storytelling in the Modern World
• Author: Richard Poulin
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Rockport Publishers (November 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592537790
• ISBN-13: 978-1592537792
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 8.4 x 9.8 inches