The Elements of Graphic Design: Space, Unity, Page Architecture, and Type |  | Author: Alexander W. White
Publisher: Allworth Press
List Price: $24.95
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Rating:  36 reviews
Sales Rank: 71910
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 160
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6.1 x 0.4
ISBN: 1581152507
Dewey Decimal Number: 686.22
EAN: 9781581152500
ASIN: 1581152507
Publication Date: November 1, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Approach page design in a revolutionary new way! Unlike other graphic design books, The Elements of Graphic Design reveals the secrets of successful graphic design from the unique perspective of the pages "white space." With the help of carefully selected examples from art, design, and architecture, the role of white space as a connection between page elements is thoroughly explored. Clear, insightful comments are presented in a dynamic page design, and interactive design elements, thought-provoking captions, and scores of illustrations challenge designers to "think out of the box." This unique resource is guaranteed to inspire more creative and thorough thinking.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 36
 Space, Unity, Page Architecture, And Type????????? August 28, 2009
Eric Martin
Not sure where the author came up with book title but it is not accurate at all! Space, unity, page architecture, and type are NOT the elements of graphic design. Anyone who has studied graphic design in college knows this. First off, there are actually 5 elements to graphic design, not 4. The elements of graphic design are: line, shape, texture, color and space. As there are the elements of graphic design, there are also the principles of graphic design. The principles of graphic design are: balance, proximity, hierarchy, alignment, repetition, contrast, and dominance.
I did buy this book however. Despite the fact that the author is not aware of the elements of graphic design (ouch!), the book does have its moments.
 Helpful tool for learning a few basics July 1, 2009
J. K. Gorenflo (Oxford, OH USA)
This book reinforces the basics of graphic design. I found it helpful and informative. The book itself has some fun design elements that I found inspirational. I would recommend it to someone interested in the subject matter as a straight-forward overview.
Concise, well designed primer on typography March 3, 2009
John D (Boston, MA USA)
This is one of the most valuable print design books a novice or professional without much formal design training could own. This well written, concise little book shows as well as it tells what makes for good print design. It introduces all the basic concepts and terminology of typography and page layout with page after page of quotable axioms and unique perspectives on design by notable designers and artists as well as White himself. It also includes a succinct glossary, designer's checklist, and bibliography.
It's especially important for design books to associate through proximity the graphic examples referred to in text, and this book does an excellent job of that. Most discussions are limited to one spread, with graphic examples on the left, discussion on the right, captions in the middle (margin to the left of the text)--a demonstration of well designed layout. And what examples. White assembles fascinating, sometimes vintage, advertising and publication covers to illustrate his points.
If there is one theme that drives the book it's White's emphasis that the message should always drive the design. And if there's one concept that's exhaustively addressed and illustrated it's the deliberate control of white space and activation of negative space, interests that no doubt stem from his extensive work in advertising.
One minor criticism I have of this otherwise thoroughly enjoyable read and exceedingly practical guide relates to the scope of its title: it primarily concerns itself with typography and printed page layout, not "graphic design" more generally. The bibliography, overwhelmingly in favor or books of typography, bears this out.
My review of The Elements of Graphic Design July 27, 2008
Edward L. Davies (Cape Town, South Africa)
I picked up this book from my local bookstore. From reading it, my assessment is that it's a somewhat mature look into the basics of graphic design. Alex draws upon several analogies, some of nature and people, and others of architecture, to explain broad aspects of design, particularly with respect to print media.
The style of writing is occasionaly obtuse, but I think there are good intentions throughout, to concisely document some sound principles and good thought processes for graphic design.
Alex details how design evolved from ancient times, giving us example design pieces, which have clear and descriptive captions, and are referred to from the main text, all of which are on the same page, so there's no page hunting to find which piece or picture relates to what information. Modern designs are critiqued with an interesting selection of pieces, and the basic framework for assessing design is also explored.
Quotes from other designers are frequently used in the text, to good effect I think, as they relate to the concepts under discussion.
My favourite chapters were the one on space and the last one on type. There were a few errors in the text, but mostly minor things.
If you're looking for a technical book then this book probably won't be for you.
I think this book would certainly appeal to designers who wish to acquire a broad insight into graphic design.
Good book for learning graphic design principles and where the process came from. February 7, 2008
heather_29 (California)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book was the course material for a beginning graphic design class I took. It was very fitting for a beginning class. The book goes over where graphic design came from in history regarding movements and art. It also covered design principles.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 36
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