History and Philosophy of Cte Graphic Design
The 32 best graphic design books
The best graphic design books aren't just for students: they're an essential way to develop and grow as a designer throughout your career. With winter approaching, it's the perfect time to load up with some great books and settle down for a cosy evening in. So we've gathered together the best graphic design books in one easy list. How many of them have you read?
These books range from timeless classics to modern masterpieces. Each of them is written by an expert in the field, and is packed with invaluable insights that you're unlikely to find elsewhere. In the 2020s, everyone's design job is becoming more and more specialised, but we're all expected to be generalists too. So the best graphic design books help solve that problem, by enabling us to stand on the shoulders of giants, past and present.
To make things easier, we've divided our selection into categories. So if there's something specific you're looking for, just click the relevant button above. And the price widgets on this page will automatically find you each book at the best price, in real time, so you might even get some great Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2021 deals right now.
Meanwhile for more great reads, don't miss our guides to the best branding books and best art books. And if you want to refresh your graphic design toolkit at the same time, see our pick of the best graphic design tools.
The best graphic design books
Logo and branding books
01. Designing Brand Identity
Guide to identity design.
Specifications
Publisher: Wiley
Author: Alina Wheeler
Publish date: 2017
Reasons to buy
+Outstanding resource +Engaging writing +Up-to-date
Alina Wheeler's best-selling guide to branding is both a design classic, and relevant to a modern audience (it's been updated five times). And it's quite brilliantly put together. In the words of design guru Paula Scher: "Alina Wheeler explains better than anyone else what identity design is and how it functions."
The book is split into three sections: brand fundamentals, process basics and case studies. It provides in-depth guidance for both designers and entire branding teams, walking you through a universal five-stage process for brand development and implementation.
This latest version includes expanded coverage of social media cross channel synergy, crowdsourcing, SEO, experience branding, mobile devices, wayfinding and placemaking. There's also a foreword from Design Matters podcast host Debbie Millman.
02. Branding: In Five and a Half Steps
Visual guide to building a brand.
Specifications
Publisher: Thames and Hudson
Author: Michael Johnson
Publish date: 2016
Reasons to buy
+No-nonsense book on branding +Opens up branding process +Genuinely useful
Anyone thinking of working in branding, or already doing it, should read this book. Famed British designer Michael Johnson divides the branding process into five key steps: investigation, strategy and narrative, design, implementation and engagement. But he doesn't oversimplify: indeed, he acknowledges the non-linear nature of branding with a crucial half step, which marks the fluid relationship between strategy and design.
A no-nonsense, six-question model structures the first half; the second part analyses the design process, using over 1,000 brand identities around the world as examples. This thoughtful read will give everyone from novices to veterans a lot to reflect on about how they approach their practice.
03. Logo Modernism
Definitive catalogue of modern trademarks.
Specifications
Publisher: Taschen GmbH
Author: Jens Muller
Publish date: 2015
Reasons to buy
+Loads of logo eye candy +Incredible resource +Focused on 1940–1980
This book is less of a fireside read and more of a reference book, but no less compelling for that. Bringing together around 6,000 trademarks, Jens Müller examines the distillation of modernism in graphic design and how these attitudes and imperatives gave birth to corporate identity. These inspirational designs are organised into three chapters – geometric, effect and typographic – and provide a comprehensive index to inform your own work. Anyone working in logo design will get a lot out of this book.
04. 50 Best Logos Ever
Behind the scenes of the world's best logos.
Specifications
Publisher: Future Publishing
Author: Various
Publish date: 2018
Reasons to buy
+Full of logo inspiration +Insight into process +Expert analysis
To create great work, you need to know the great work that came before you. In this inspiring book, leading branding and identity design experts come together to bring you the definitive list of the 50 best logos ever. This groundbreaking book also explains how they were created, bringing together a lot of useful and inspiring back stories in bite-size pieces. Find out if your favourite logo makes the cut, and how it came about in the first place.
Typography books
05. The Elements of Typographic Style (v4)
Classic guide to typography and its history.
Specifications
Publisher: Hartley & Marks
Author: Robert Bringhurst
Publish date: 2013
Reasons to buy
+The ultimate type manual +Covers all the basics, plus extras +Wonderfully written
First published in 1992, this history and guide to typography from typographer Robert Bringhurst is a design industry classic. Leading typographers Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones call it "the finest book ever written about typography", and the moment you open its pages, it's obvious why.
This is not only a beautifully written manual combining practical, theoretical and historical information. It also goes deeper, and shares a thoughtful philosophy and understanding of typography. But it's not heavy going. Indeed, the appendix of the Latin alphabet and its characters is a great piece of eye-candy all designers will adore. Plus if you reference this book smartly in the company of other creatives, you'll probably be taken that little bit more seriously.
06. Drawing Type
Inspiration for creating your own type designs.
Specifications
Publisher: Rockport
Author: Alex Fowkes
Publish date: 2014
Reasons to buy
+Packed with inspiring designs +Interviews and insight +See real-world sketchbooks
Creating your own type designs is a great way to understand typography in general. And whether you're doing this as a fun side project or ultimately want to earn some serious money as a type designer, this book by Alex Fowkes will help get you started.
Part inspiration and part workbook, it features a ton of real-world projects and sketchbooks of well-known type designers, including interviews about their processes. Note, though, this isn't a straight 'how to' guide: more of a mixture of insight and inspiration.
07. Why Fonts Matter
Explains the science behind choosing a typeface.
Specifications
Publisher: Virgin Books
Author: Sarah Hyndman
Publish date: 2016
Reasons to buy
+Explores the science of fonts +Authoritative and insightful +Learn to influence your audience
Type choice isn't random, but there are so many fonts to choose from, where do start? If you're finding it a challenge, this book by graphic designer and typographer Sarah Hyndman can help. It explores the science behind font design, and uncovers why different styles provoke different reactions in people. Apparently, fonts have the power to alter the taste of your food. As you might guess, you won't find these kinds of insights elsewhere!
08. Just My Type
The history of type.
Specifications
Publisher: Profile Books
Author: Simon Garfield
Publish date: 2011
Reasons to buy
+Informative +Detailed history +Very engaging read
The right font choice can make or break a design. But to understand why certain typefaces resonate with people, you need to understand their history. And that's exactly the subject Simon Garfield's book Just My Type explores. Even if you think you already know it all, this fantastic book will teach you new things about why the greatest fonts work so well, and give you a fresh new perspective on type design.
How to be a graphic designer
09. Work Hard & Be Nice to People
Career advice from a design great.
Specifications
Publisher: Pop Press
Author: Anthony Burrill
Publish date: August 2020
Reasons to buy
+Very engaging +Lots of useful tips +Inspiring
You've seen his world-famous prints, now read his book. Anthony Burrill's Work Hard & Be Nice to People is short, sharp and beautifully concise. Cutting all the fat from the message, his lack of pretension and full heart make this an enthralling read.
The book is basically an inspiring account of what Burrill values in creatives. A re-worked version of his previous book Make it Now, with added material, this book will help you get the best out of your design practice, without selling your soul, or indeed, being horrible to people along the way.
10. Show Your Work!
How to build your name in the profession.
Specifications
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
Author: Austin Kleon
Publish date: 2014
Reasons to buy
+Important lessons +Useful ideas +Imaginatively written
Even the most talented designers won't get anywhere if no one sees their work. From the author of the bestselling Steal Like an Artist, this book show you how to solve that question, by reaching your audience and building a name for yourself.
Motion designer and 3D illustrator Hashmukh Kerai is amongst this book's fans. "I feel most creative people are too precious with their work, leaving you feeling vulnerable when it's finally ready to be shared," he says. "Show Your Work! helped me start posting work on social media, allowing for feedback, and moving on to the next project."
11. How to do great work without being an asshole
Advice on thriving as a designer.
Specifications
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Author: Paul Woods
Publish date: 2019
Reasons to buy
+Great infographics +Funny and clear advice +Helpful sections
At university you learn a lot of design theory, but not so much about how things work in the real world. This book explains how to navigating agency life in a highly amusing and irreverent manner. But it's also practical. Its infographics and flow diagrams bring creative processes like pitching and giving feedback to visual life, and its short, sharp chapters make everything clear and easy to follow.
12. How to be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul
Expert advice on being successful.
Specifications
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Author: Adrian Shaughnessy
Publish date: 2010
Reasons to buy
+Top practical advice +Philosophical guidance +Intelligent writing
Here's a great business book that doesn't read like a typical business book. Full of honesty and plain speaking, and low on waffle and jargon, How to Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul is full of sound advice on getting a design job, setting yourself up as a freelancer, founding your own company, dealing with clients, pitching and loads more. The author, a well-known designer and industry commentator, calls on such luminaries as Neville Brody, Natalie Hunter, John Warwicker and Andy Cruz to help pull together his ideas.
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13. How to...
Monograph, manual & manifesto by a world-leading designer.
Specifications
Publisher: Harper Design
Author: Michael Bierut
Publish date: 2021 (originally published 2015)
Reasons to buy
+Pro industry insight +Beautifully written +Invaluable resource
Veteran designer and Pentagram New York partner Michael Bierut released this monograph, which also serves as a manual and manifesto, in 2015. Detailing 35 projects, Bierut Рwho's a prot̩g̩ of design legend Massimo Vignelli Рillustrates the varied role that graphic design plays in the modern world.
Rough sketches and rejected ideas sit alongside finished work in this beautiful crafted book. Fully updated for 2021, it's packed with insights into the creative process, making it a valuable resource to new and established designers alike.
14. Graphic Design for...
Guide to how studios think and work.
Specifications
Publisher: Prestel
Author: Andy Cooke
Publish date: 2018
Reasons to buy
+Great insights +Beautiful design +Bang up to date
Design theory is all very well, but how do you put it into practice? That's what this book sets out to answer. It features several concrete examples in the form of branding campaigns by major design studios, including Studio Makgill (for G. F. Smith), Freytag Anderson (for Fraher Architects) and Ico Design (for David Rowland).
This is combined with illuminating interviews with many of the creatives involved. And as a designer himself, the author knows all the right questions to ask. With the emphasis on creative collaboration and developing designs to work on multiple touchpoints, this is an inspiring and informative guide to modern design.
15. Work for Money, Design for Love
How to run a design business.
Specifications
Publisher: New Riders
Author: David Airey
Publish date: 2012
Reasons to buy
+Sound advice +Great case studies +Refreshingly written
David Airey, author of Logo Design Love, gets a lot of questions about running your own company. And in this refreshingly, straightforward guide to starting your own design business, he answers them. Touching on everything from the mindset needed to be a designer to taking your first steps in business, this is a must-read for anyone thinking of setting out on their own.
16. The Art of Looking Sideways
Primer on visual intelligence.
Specifications
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Author: Alan Fletcher
Publish date: 2001
Reasons to buy
+Thought-provoking essays +Full of wisdom +Beautiful graphics
Alan Fletcher, the co-founder of Pentagram, penned various thought-provoking tomes during his graphic design career, but The Art of Looking Sideways is the best known. It questions the way designers think about everything from colour to composition. Throughout its 75 chapters, you get anecdotes, quotations, images, curious facts and useless information, oddities, serious science, jokes and memories, all concerned with the interplay between the verbal and the visual, and the limitless resources of the human mind.
Once you've digested this seminal text, you might also want to give Picturing and Poeting a go. That title explores the link between imagery and meaning through a series of visual mind-teasers, games and visual puns, assembled from his personal notebooks and diaries.
17. A Designer's Art
Iconic designer Paul Rand's must-read manifesto.
Specifications
Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press
Author: Paul Rand
Publish date: 2016
Reasons to buy
+Incredible resource +Insightful essays +Steven Heller afterword
Known as the godfather of modern branding and one of the most influential American graphic designers of the 20th century, Paul Rand has several books to his name. Here's the best one to start with. A Designer's Art probes deeply into the process of graphic design in general: why it's important; the impact it can have on society; what works, what doesn't, and most importantly, why. A book to be read thoroughly, rather than flipped through.
18. Graphic Design: A User's Manual
Insider's guide to design practice.
Specifications
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Author: Adrian Shaughnessy
Publish date: 2009
Reasons to buy
+Wealth of insight +Wide range of topics +Pro career guidance
Another excellent book from Adrian Shaughnessy, this guide covers everything you need to know to survive and prosper in the ever-shifting world of graphic design. Topics include annual reports, budgeting, kerning, presenting, dealing with rejection and more. An entertaining and invaluable resource, packed with tips on the things you won't have been taught at design school.
19. The Little Know-It-All
A treasure trove of essential info.
Specifications
Publisher: Die Gestalten Verlag
Author: Robert Klanton
Publish date: 2007
Reasons to buy
+Indispensable manual +Includes social media and SEO +Succinct
This is a small book, but don't judge it by its size: this may be the most useful book you can own as a designer. It offers advice on everything from light, colour and perspective to law and marketing in succinct, beautifully formed prose. With eight chapters covering Design, Typography, Digital Media, Social Media, Production, Marketing, Law, and Organisation, the book also includes definitions of unique vocabulary, written for a global audience. It's the kind of book that you never stop reading once you start; and the kind you'll always refer back to later.
Design theory and history
20. Graphic Design: A History (third edition)
A beautiful history of graphic design.
Specifications
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Author: Stephen K Eskilson
Publish date: 2019
Reasons to buy
+Very thorough +Beautiful visuals +Updated for new edition
Graphic Design: A History is an informative and engaging history of graphic design that's been updated for the latest edition. Organised chronologically, the book traces the impact of politics, economics, war, nationalism, colonialism, gender and art on graphic designers working in print and film and with the latest web, multimedia and emerging digital technologies.
Its third edition includes 500 new images, a new chapter on current trends in digital design, and an expanded introduction. This chunky textbook is the sort of thing that should be on every student bookshelf and agency coffee table.
21. Grid Systems in Graphic Design
The definitive guide to grids.
Specifications
Publisher: Verlag Niggli
Author: Josef Mülller-Brockmann
Publish date: 1999
Reasons to buy
+Invaluable grids resource +Detailed examples +Very informative
A grid system is an established tool that is used by print and web designers to create well-structured, balanced designs. This book remains the definitive word on using grid systems in graphic design. Written by legendary Swiss graphic designer Josef Mülller-Brockmann, this visual communication manual is packed with examples on how to work correctly at a conceptual level. A must-read for any student or practising designer.
22. Ways of Seeing
Design classic that never dates.
Specifications
Publisher: Penguin Modern Classics
Author: John Berger
Publish date: 2008 (original 1972)
Reasons to buy
+Eye-opening +Classic design book +Thought-provoking
To create successful work that's designed to be seen, you need to understand how people see things. That's where Ways of Seeing comes in. Written by art critic and painter John Burger and based on a BBC TV series, this bestseller explores the way we view art.
Designer Greg Bunbury says the book was responsible for a "pivotal shift" in his design studies. "I began to understand composition and context in every ad I saw," he says. "I recognised the inherent tension that advertising creates, and how to replicate it. But most importantly, it made me want to create meaningful communications: images worth seeing."
23. Interaction of Color
Classic on colour theory.
Specifications
Publisher: Yale University Press
Author: Josef Albers
Publish date: 2013
Reasons to buy
+Fascinating +Must-read textbook +Insightful exercises
Conceived as a handbook and teaching aid for artists, instructors and students, Interaction of Color presents Josef Albers's singular explanation of complex colour theory principles. Fifty years since it was first published, it's sold over a quarter of a million copies and remains an essential resource on colour today. It teaches you about principles such as colour relativity, intensity and temperature; vibrating and vanishing boundaries; and the illusion of transparency and reversed grounds.
24. The Graphic Language of Neville Brody Vol 1-3
How Brody's best designs were made.
Specifications
Publisher: Thames and Hudson Ltd
Author: Jon Wozencroft
Publish date: 1988
Reasons to buy
+Incredibly inspiring +In-depth intro to Brody +Classic design text
Neville Brody was president of D&AD and head of Research Studios' global studio network. But it was arguably his 1980s heyday that had the biggest impact on contemporary graphic design. First published in 1988, this book explores the thought process behind some of his best-known work, including his genre-defining art direction of The Face magazine.
25. Left to Right
How tech influences communication.
Specifications
Publisher: AVA Publishing
Author: David Crowe
Publish date: 2006
Reasons to buy
+Seminal text +Covers range of subjects +Both academic and practical
Visual communication rests on the power of semiotics, a concept that David Crow examines in expert detail in this seminal book. Dealing with the principles of written communication and its relationship to imagery, and rounded off with an examination of audience understanding, this is a valuable assessment of academic yet essential design theory.
Designer monographs
26. Two-Dimensional Man
Fresh take on the monograph.
Specifications
Publisher: Abrams Press
Author: Paul Sahre
Publish date: 2017
Reasons to buy
+Part memoir +Part art book +Part meditation on creativity
Paul Sahre is one of the most influential graphic designers of his generation, and he lectures about graphic design all over the world. His book, Two-Dimensional Man, is part monograph, part autobiography, part art book and part reflection on creativity. Combining personal essays that discuss the realities of his 30-year career, he proves that throughout highs and lows, humour can be a saving grace. Two-Dimensional Manportrays the designer's life as one of constant questioning, inventing, failing, dreaming, and ultimately making.
27. Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far
Inspiration from a living legend.
Specifications
Publisher: Abrams Press
Author: Stefan Sagmeister
Publish date: 2013
Reasons to buy
+Insight into a design genius +Fascinating projects +Very inspiring
Austria-born, New York-based designer Stefan Sagmeister is one of the creative world's best-known and influential figures. His monograph, first published in 2008, revolves around 21 thought-provoking phrases, transformed into typographic works for various clients around the world and has been since updated. Noted designer Steven Heller, art critic and curator Nancy Spector and psychologist and Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile author Daniel Nettle contribute essays to the book. His second text, Made You Look, spans 20 years of his graphic design in depth. The two complement each other perfectly.
28. Malika Favre
Meet "the designer's illustrator".
Specifications
Publisher: Counter-Print
Author: Garrick Webster & Malika Favre (text), Jon Dowling & Céline Leterme (design)
Publish date: 2018
Reasons to buy
+Large-format +Great insights +Beautiful visuals
French illustrator Malika Favre is very much a graphic designer's illustrator. In her own words, her work is underpinned by "grids and geometric structures as a backbone for each composition". So this is a great book for illustrators, but also one of the best graphic design books.
This large-format book showcases work from across her career. Divided into some of her most oft-used themes, such as women, it features some stunning New Yorker covers and erotica, including her Kama Sutra-based alphabet.
Ideas and inspiration
Guide to working in the creative industries.
Specifications
Publisher: Brand Nu Limited
Author: Radim Malinic
Publish date: 2018
Reasons to buy
+Stunning 3D illustration work +Frank, useful advice +Based on real experience
The second volume of graphic designer Radim Malinic's inspirational journal Book of Ideas is packed with advice on how to make it in the fast-paced creative industries. The designer, who works under the name Brand Nu, shares his musings on creativity and working in design, along with his key career learnings. You can read our full review here.
30. Keep Going
Inspirational book on being creative.
Specifications
Publisher: Workman Publishing
Author: Austin Kleon
Publish date: 2019
Reasons to buy
+Bite-sized tips +Practical advice +Easy to follow
Want a book you can dip in and out of, every time you need a jolt of inspiration? This short and sweet book is a great pick-me-up if you're stuck in a creative rut. It contains practical advice for feeding your creativity, and offers a way to look at your situation or creative problem in a different light. With fun diagrams and drawings too, this is a lighthearted yet considerate look at how to be creative.
31. The Graphic Design Idea Book: Inspiration from 50 Masters
The key elements of good design.
Specifications
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Authors: Steven Heller and Gail Anderson
Publish date: 2016
Reasons to buy
+Ideas from 50 leading designers +Prevents creative block +Very insightful
Featuring work by acclaimed designers such as Paul Brand, Neville Brody and Stefan Sagmeister, this book covers all the key elements of great design. Authors Steven Hiller and Gail Anderson hone in on professional techniques and provide a refresher on colour, narrative, illusion, humour, simplicity, ornaments and more, in a way that's instantly accessible and easy to understand.
32. Illustration Play
New concepts in illustration.
Specifications
Publisher: Viction Design Workshop
Authors: Gingko Press
Publish date: 2007
Reasons to buy
+Extraordinary illustration ideas +Exclusive interviews +Striking cover design
It's said you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but here's an exception. Illustration Play has one of the most beautiful, special and intriguing covers you'll see, each one being individually stickered by hand, and this is representative of the explorative approach taken by the illustrators featured in the book. It's a beautiful object in itself and it provides new ideas and ways to realise concepts within contemporary illustration.
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Mark Wynne has designed many magazines, including cult videogame title Edge. He is currently art editor of Computer Arts magazine.
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History and Philosophy of Cte Graphic Design
Source: https://www.creativebloq.com/graphic-design/books-graphic-designers-11135231
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