Kit Hinrichs’s Book List
It’s interesting to be asked about what books have influenced my career. Although I am an avid reader (often of airplane trash), most of what has affected my career is the observation of what you see in everyday culture. My book list is a very broad array of books that have inspired, influenced, and informed my career through the editorial eye of the designer, artist, photographer, or writer who wrote, created, assembled, analyzed, and designed the material within the pages of these books.
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Classic art about a classic rock group.
Western wear is one of America’s original clothing designs.
The conscience of design.
Guy is perhaps the most iconic and ironic designer working today.
Dixon captured the essence of a region.
Perhaps the best examples of corporate design in print today, and all designed by one firm.
La crème de la crème of international poster design.
An in-depth look at one of the 20th century’s geniuses.
The best compilation of products I know of.
A classic book about one of the 20th century’s most influential imagery makers.
A comprehensive and practical look at the origin and use of clichés.
Perhaps the most influential documentarian of our (American) culture.
The iconoclast of the design business.
For me, Glaser is one of the most influential design thinkers in the world.
Folk art remains an entry level to all cultures and this book is a great guide.
A fascinating collection and perspective on maps.
I collect all of Steven’s books and I just love illustration.
Lou Dorfsman’s work in the corporate world is phenomenal.
A collection of maximum wit with a minimum of line.
An international giant of typography as sculptor.
On one of the most influential designers of the early 20th century.
An interesting design comparison of one culture’s design aesthetic superimposed on another.
Surely one of the best “thinkers” in photography.
Lois was perhaps the most influential art director in my life.
The best reference guide to American design, even if I didn’t make the cut!
Morison was and is one of my typographic heroes—he influences me daily.
A historical reference book with contemporary meaning.
The influence of these designers and their work is as fresh today as it was when they were created.
Irving Penn's imagery is the gold standard for art direction and photography.
A great perspective on the American spirit through illustration; a win-win.
A tour-de-force exploration of an artist’s imagination.
A very entertaining and contemporary look at historic typography.
A fabulous approach to understanding artists.
One of the most imaginative Op-Ed illustrators in the field.
One of the leaders in information design.
One of the best assemblages of illustration in America in the 20th century.
A leader in explaining everything to everyone.
Young was one of my most influential teachers on typographic spacing.
Announcements
Now is Better by Stefan Sagmeister
Now is Better
By Stefan Sagmeister
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: October 2023
Combining art, design, history, and quantitative analysis, transforms data sets into stunning artworks that underscore his positive view of human progress, inspiring us to think about the future with much-needed hope.
Design Emergency: Building a Better Future by Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli
Design Emergency: Building a Better Future
By Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli
Publisher: Phaidon Press
Published: May 2022
Rawsthorn and Antonelli tell the stories of the remarkable designers, architects, engineers, artists, scientists, and activists who are at the forefront of positive change worldwide. Focusing on four themes—Technology, Society, Communication, and Ecology—the authors present a unique portrait of how our great creative minds are developing new design solutions to the major challenges of our time, while helping us to benefit from advances in science and technology.
Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World’s Most Creative People by Debbie Millman
Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World's Most Creative People
By Debbie Millman
Publisher: Harper Design
Published: February 22, 2022
Debbie Millman—author, educator, brand consultant, and host of the widely successful and award-winning podcast “Design Matters”—showcases dozens of her most exciting interviews, bringing together insights and reflections from today’s leading creative minds from across diverse fields.
Milton Glaser: POP by Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber
Milton Glaser: POP
By Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber
Publisher: The Monacelli Press
Published: March 2023
This collection of work from graphci design legend Milton Glaser’s Pop period features hundreds of examples of the designer’s work that have not been seen since their original publication, demonstrating the graphic revolution that transformed design and popular culture.
Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall by Alexandra Lange
Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall
By Alexandra Lange
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Published: June 2022
Chronicles postwar architects’ and merchants’ invention of the shopping mall, revealing how the design of these marketplaces played an integral role in their cultural ascent. Publishers Weekly writes, “Contending that malls answer ‘the basic human need’ of bringing people together, influential design critic Lange advocates for retrofitting abandoned shopping centers into college campuses, senior housing, and ‘ethnocentric marketplaces’ catering to immigrant communities. Lucid and well researched, this is an insightful study of an overlooked and undervalued architectural form.”
Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition) by Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller
Die Fläche: Design and Lettering of the Vienna Secession, 1902–1911 (Facsimile Edition)
By Diane V. Silverthorne, Dan Reynolds, and Megan Brandow-Faller
Publisher: Letterform Archives Books
Published: October 2023
This facsimile edition of Die Fläche, recreates every page of the formative design periodical in full color and at original size, accompanied by essays that contextualize the work, highlighting contributions by pathbreaking women, innovative lettering artists, and key practitioners of the new “surface art,” including Rudolf von Larisch, Alfred Roller, and Wiener Werkstätte founders Koloman Moser and Josef Hoffmann.
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