Minimalissimo Nº1

Minimalissimo Nº1

Minimalissimo Nº1

Minimalissimo Nº1

Have you heard of the site Minimalissimo? If not, go check it out. It’s an excellent online magazine for minimal design. They now have a printed magazine, and Issue Nº1 is available. The printed edition highlights the best features from the website, as well as exploring the minimalist design ethos and its influence on creativity.

More about the issue:

We have outlined five wide ranging disciplines—architecture, art, fashion, graphic & package design, and industrial design—to showcase what we feel is outstanding minimalism. We gain fascinating insights into the working lives of some of the most renowned artists, architects and designers of today. We interview Danish multidisciplinary studio Norm Architects, Swiss artist Zimoun, unisex fashion designer Rad Hourani, and Vitsœ managing director Mark Adams, who worked alongside the great Dieter Rams for more than twenty years.

The magazine consists of 160 pages on 120gsm uncoated paper, with a 300gsm soft-touch laminate uncoated cover.

Grab a copy on the website or from a stockist.

Reissue of the 1975 NASA Graphics Standards Manual

NASA Graphics Manual Reissue

NASA Graphics Manual Reissue

NASA Graphics Manual Reissue

NASA Graphics Manual Reissue

Jesse Reed & Hamish Smyth, the fellas behind the wonderful 1970 NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual reissue, have announced a new Kickstarter for the reissue of the 1975 NASA Graphics Standards Manual.

The original manual was created in 1975 as part of a NASA redesign done by Richard Danne and Bruce Blackburn, and it’s an important piece of American graphic design history. I’ve been on the lookout for years for a copy of the manual, but I still haven’t be able to find one. It’s super rare. That’s what makes this project so great. The manual will now be available to the general public, so everyone will get to enjoy it.

The reissued manual will be based on the Danne’s personal copy, and should ship in March 2016. Jesse and Hamish did an incredible job on the NYCTA manual, so I’m sure this reissue will be just as good. I’m definitely backing the project.

Here are the specs:

  • Images from the original presentation to NASA by Danne & Blackburn
  • 500+ word foreword by Danne, who has provided never-before-seen materials from the DanneDesign archive
  • 2000+ word essay on the culture of NASA at the time of the manual by Christopher Bonanos
  • Approximately 5lbs (2.3kg) on earth, 0.9lbs (0.4kg) on the moon
  • 9.5 × 11.5″ (241 × 292mm)
  • 200 pages including 10 gate folds
  • 93 plates printed from high-resolution scans of Danne’s personal copy of the manual
  • CYMK + 5 Pantone® spot colors
  • Hardcover with soft touch lamination and two-color silkscreen
  • Printed in Italy
  • 100 gsm Yupo Original and Perigord Matte 135 gsm
  • Stochastic printing
  • Red head and tail bands
  • Individually packaged in static shielding pouch

The Debate: The Legendary Contest of Two Giants of Graphic Design

Monacelli Press has published the first English translation of an historic 1972 debate between Dutch graphic designers Wim Crouwel and Jan van Toorn, at Amsterdam’s Museum Fodor.

Held in response to an exhibition of Van Toorn’s work at Stedelijk Museum, including student posters protesting the Vietnam War—in an era of youth culture and increasing resistance to authority, capitalism, and the power of media—the stakes were aesthetic, ethical, and politically charged.

Crouwel defended his approach of neutrality and austere rationalism, attention to typography and worksmanship, and professionalism in service of the client’s message. Van Toorn argued for his use of chaos, collage, and photographs of everyday life; that a designer’s ideas, personality, and political commitments are integral to the work.

Order vs. Disorder. I vaguely remember reading about this debate, but I’ve never seen a transcripts of it. Definitely interested in checking this out.

The clothbound book also includes a foreword by Rick Poynor, and a gallery of work from Crouwel and Van Toorn.

And starting today, Design Observer will be publishing four excerpts from the book.

NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual Limited Reissue

NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual Reissue

NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual Reissue

NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual Reissue

NYCTA Graphics Standards Manual Reissue

Remember those fellas who found an original copy of the NYC Transit Authority Graphic Standards Manual in the basement of Pentagram? Well, they’re partnering with the MTA to release a limited run of manual through Kickstarter.

It won’t be exactly like the original manual. The original is ring bound in binder, but the reissue will feature a cloth hardcover and unaltered high-resolution scans of each page of the manual, all Smyth sewn together. It will measure 13.5” W × 13.5″ H (343 x 343 mm).There will be an introduction by Michael Bierut, and an essay by New York magazine writer Christopher Bonanos.

The manual will be printed in Italy on 100 and 140 gsm Munken Pure ivory offset paper. The cover, introduction, and essay headings will be set in a custom version of Standard Medium by type designer Nick Sherman, that he recreated from the photographs of the original manual.

This is a great way to get this wonderful piece of design history in the hands of more people. I’ve backed it.