What Happened at “What’s About To Happen in Architecture and Design Book Publishing”
Highlights from our May 14 panel discussion and pop-up design book fair.
May 18, 2015
This past Thursday, May 14, Designers & Books and the Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography at Cooper Union co-hosted a panel discussion and pop-up architecture and design book fair showcasing new design books and design book news.
Part of NYCxDESIGN 2015, New York’s citywide celebration of design during May, the lively evening offered members of the public insights from design publishing professionals, discounts on new and recent titles, book giveaways, and the chance to mingle with fellow design bibliophiles over refreshments. Here are some highlights from the event.
More than 250 people signed up to attend the free panel discussion on “What's About To Happen in Architecture and Design Book Publishing” held in Cooper Union’s Rose Auditorium from 7:00 to 8:30 PM. Panelists, representing four prominent publishers with a focus on design and architecture, included:
- Will Balliett, President and Publisher, Thames & Hudson Inc.
- Patricia Fidler, Publisher, Art and Architecture, Yale University Press
- Pamela Horn, Head of Cross-Platform Publishing, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
- Kyle May, Editor in Chief, CLOG
The discussion, which was followed by an audience Q&A, was moderated by Steve Kroeter, Editor in Chief of Designers & Books. Topics discussed ranged from the current market for beautifully designed print books to an exploration of new formats and platforms, including crowdfunding. “It’s all about publishers focusing on what readers want,” the Cooper Hewitt’s Pamela Horn commented.
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The evening began at 5:00 PM in the auditorium lobby and adjacent to the Lubalin Center with a pop-up book fair featuring new and recently released architecture and design titles at 25% off from CLOG; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; Thames & Hudson; and Yale University Press. After the panel discussion, attendees were invited to a reception and continuation of the book fair until 10:00 PM.
The event was live-tweeted, using the hashtag #WATH2015.
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| Book fair attendees signing up to enter drawings for design book giveaways. Photo: Gayatri Mullapudi |
Throughout the evening, three different drawings (two at the book fair and one in the auditorium at the conclusion of the panel discussion) were held to win new and recently released architecture and design books. Three lucky winners each received four books—one from each of the four publishers at the fair.
The giveaway titles included:
From CLOG: CLOG: Guggenheim by Kyle May and Julia van den Hout; CLOG: Rem by Kyle May; and CLOG: World Trade Center by Kyle May and Julia van den Hout.
From Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum: Making Design by Cara McCarty, Matilda McQuaid, Susan Brown, and Kimberly Randall; Tool: Extending Our Reach by by Cara McCarty and Matilda McQuaid; and How Posters Work by Ellen Lupton.
From Thames & Hudson: Open Source Architecture by Carlo Ratti with Matthew Claudel; Mountain Modern by Dominic Bradbury and Richard Powers; and Material Innovation: Architecture by Andrew H. Dent and Leslie Sherr.
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| Steve Kroeter, Editor in Chief of Designers & Books (left); and Alexander Tochilovsky, Curator of the Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography—co-hosts of the event on May 14. Photo: Laura Mircik-Sellers |
From Yale University Press: An Eames Anthology by Charles Eames and Ray Eames, edited by Daniel Ostroff; Hawaiian Modern by Dean Sakamoto and Karla Britton; and Interaction of Color (25th Anniversary Edition) by Josef Albers.
Books for the giveaways were generously donated by the participating publishers. Heidi Smith, Shop Manager at the Cooper Hewitt, graciously ran the check-out desk during the book fair.
As a thank you, each of the panelists received a copy of A Curious Mind by Brian Grazer, courtesy of Simon & Schuster.
This event was the first of what will be an ongoing series of collaborations between the Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography at Cooper Union and Designers & Books.
Mark your calendars for after work on Wednesday, June 10!
Pop-up Design Book Fair at WeWork Soho West featuring 10 publishers and all books at 35% off. Details.
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