Graphic Style: From Victorian to Hipster

This is only a bit more material than the previous edition so it depends on your era of interest. My old copy was partially damaged and since the rest is identical I made the right choice having both. Just gorgeous in the historical and technological context.

This new edition of "Graphic Style" is identical to the previous edition (2011), with one new chapter added-- 16 pages on so-called "Hipster" design of the 2010s. The authors' introduction says this is the "fourth and final edition" of their text, and like the previous three editions, it's intended to serve as a complement to more detailed graphic design history books (like Meggs' "History"), by providing a "bird's eye view" of the field.I've found previous editions of this book to be useful in the way the authors describe, and have recommended it to students because it offers a quick overview and cultural context for key movements in design history. I'm a completist, so I don't mind the amount of repetition from one edition to the next. But other owners of the 2011 edition may want to think twice before upgrading to the 2018 version.

I purchased this book specifically for its section on the American punk rock graphic style. There was literally one page in the entire book on that style. I was going to utilize this as part of my research for a project for my history of graphic design class. To say it was disappointing would be the understatement of the year. To be fair it does look good on my bookshelf, but it really doesn't do much for my academic study..

Not a bad book if you have nothing else, but not great either... I was quite disappointed by the amount of black-and white pictures and the overall selection of the included examples (they just don't catch the essence of the styles... It has many-many flaws, mainly typos in the artists names. If you want to explore further online you'll have a hard time findig their real names... Also there's not a single mention about Jamie Reid's 70s punk designs for example. Some of the articles seems quite subjective, I can sure can tell the author doesn't like the victorian era of graphic design, and rush over it quickly... I've red much better books in this theme, I suggest you to find something else. Not much to discover here.

worth the money