Twentieth-Century Type FROM THE PUBLISHER
"Twentieth-Century Type surveys the significant issues that have shaped the history and evolution of typography and graphic design, showing how current typographic trends are part of a continuously changing movement that can be plotted through the decades. Illustrated with over three hundred examples - more than two hundred of which are in color - the book charts significant topics including the arrival of mass-production; the birth of the art director; the appearance of the grid (and its subsequent rejection); the coming of non-print media; and the launch of the Macintosh computer and its ushering in of a new generation of designers enfranchised by digital technology." This revised edition of a fundamental work brings the story up to date with new text and images covering type on screen and, in particular, type for the internet. Combining an assessment of the culture of experimentation in contemporary typographic design alongside a clear presentation of the field's historical context, the book is an informal and accessible source for all students of design and for designers needing an expert overview of typography.
FROM THE CRITICS
Library Journal
This survey of 20th-century type adds a critical view of the last decade, taking into account the enormous influence of digital technology and the Internet on visual design and communication. With over 200 color illustrations (300 total), the book is beautiful, but the real treat here, as in the previous edition (Twentieth-Century Type Remix, 1999), is Blackwell's engaging prose. His passion for type and its ubiquitous presence and influence in our lives will infect even casual readers. Besides the influence of digital technology, he addresses mass production, the art director, layout grids, and the Macintosh. There is enough new material to make this an essential choice for libraries with a demonstrated interest in the field. It won't soon be surpassed as the definitive treatment, so, for the price, other libraries will want to consider it as well.-Mark Woodhouse, Elmira Coll. Lib., NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Library Journal
This book steps back from the usual typographic discussions found in style and design manuals and places type in the context of the larger social and cultural movements that influenced and were influenced by it, from the Arts and Crafts movement of William Morris to deconstruction in our own time. Beautifully illustrated, carefully researched, and eloquently presented, this volume traces type decade by decade through the turbulence of the century and the rapid changes in technology and viewpoint that repeatedly threatened to degrade the craft and from which it always emerged fresh and vital. Recommended for all graphic arts and larger art collections. See also Robert Bringhurst's The Elements of Typographic Style and Alex White's Type in Use , reviewed below.--Ed.-- Mark Woodhouse, Elmira Coll. Lib., N.Y.
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