Jan Tschichold: A Life in Typography

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Ruari McLean

Princeton Architectural Press, New York, 1997, English

Nonfiction, Graphic Design

9.5 x 9.5 inches, hardcover, 128 pages, 30 color and 100 black-and-white illustrations

ISBN: 9781568980843

From the Publisher. German type and book designer Jan Tschichold (1902-1974) revolutionized modern typography through his bold, asymmetrical designs and use of sanserif typography, both inspired by the work of the Bauhaus. He proclaimed his new design philosophy through a series of articles and books, including Die neue Typographie, published in Berlin in 1928. His international renown came largely as a result of his redesign of Penguin's entire series of paperback novels just after World War II. Any graphic designer practicing today owes a debt to Tschichold's innovation.

Jan Tschichold: A Life in Typography offers a concise biography of Tschichold, accompanied by numerous examples of his vast body of work. It serves as an introduction to Tschichold for those who are unfamiliar with his influential style, yet for the experienced designer it is an excellent collection of the wide range of his designs.

On 2 book lists

Sheila Levrant de Bretteville

On Sheila Levrant de Bretteville’s Book List

I was a fan of Jan Tschichold’s Asymmetric Typography. In this book the section of letters from Max Bill caught my attention. The anger Bill displays appeared to me to be indicative of a not unfamiliar rigidity among those who dismiss changes in the way a creative person makes his or her work because of preferring the values and forms embodied by that person’s previous ideas and ways of making.

Angus Hyland

On Angus Hyland’s Book List

The ultimate designer.

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