NYC Transit Authority Graphics Standards Manual

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I’ve been trying to get my hands on a copy of the NYC Transit Authority Graphics Standards Manual for years now with no luck. I came very close last year when I was bidding on an eBay auction for a copy, but I lost it. I still regret not bidding higher.

Seems like these folks have better luck, because they happened to find a first edition copy in a locker beneath some old gym clothes at Pentagram’s NY office. Are you kidding me? Nope. Lucky bastards. They photographed every page and put high-res photos up on a site for us all to drool over. Enjoy.

Typographische Monatsblätter Research Archive

Typographische Monatsblatter Research Archive

Prepare to spend the rest of your day on this site. TM Research Archive is an incredible website that catalogs cover designs of the influencial journal, Typographische Monatsblätter. The site focuses on the issues from 1960 to 1990, the period that had the most influence on modern typography, and it features interviews with designers that have contributed to the publication over the years, as well information on the designer and typeface used for each issue.

The site was created by Louise Paradis as part of her Master degree in Art Direction at the ECAL/University of Art and Design Lausanne, Switzerland. The project continued with the financial support from ECAL and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland.

All of the issues photographed were from the private collection of Jean-Pierre Graber, the chief editor of TM for over twenty years.

The site gives you a great sense of how the design evolved over the decades. My personal favorites are the covers designed by Yves Zimmermann, Emil Ruder, Robert Büchler and Felix Berman.

What an amazing resource to have available to designers. Thank you Louise.

Graphic Design for Non-profit Organizations

Graphic Design for Non-profit Organizations

AisleOne reader, Sean Wolcott, wrote in to tell me that Massimo Vignelli has given him permission to distribute a high-res PDF of his book, Graphic Design for Non-profit Organizations. This rare book is by Vignelli and Peter Laundry, and was published in 1980 in partnership with AIGA. The book focuses on design and best practices for non-profit organizations, but the content is a great resource in general and the teachings can be applied pretty much anywhere. There are sections on grids, typography, formats, logotypes, and color, just to name a few.

A big thank you to Massimo and Sean for making this valuable resource available to all.

You can download the PDF from here.

Herb Lubalin: American Graphic Designer 1918—81

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Here’s another gem from Unit Editions. A limited edition monograph featuring the work of Herb Lubalin. This book covers Herb Lubalin’s, from his beginnings in advertising, to his status as one of the most influential graphic designers of the last century.

The book is edited by Adrian Shaughnessy, Tony Brook and Alexander Tochilovsky, and designed Spin.

The Phaidon Archive of Graphic Design

The Phaidon Archive of Graphic Design

Book publisher Phaidon has annoucned “The Phaidon Archive of Graphic Design”, a massive reference guide on graphic design that includes newspapers, magazines, posters, advertisements, typefaces, logos, corporate design, record covers and moving graphics from around the world. Sounds like a good addition to any collection.

The publication will be released in September, but you can pre-order a copy from Amazon.