Graphic Design: A New History

Graphic Design by Stephen J. Eskilson is a digital PDF book about the development of graphic design from the nineteenth century to the present day.

This second edition is organized chronologically and examines the relationship between design and manufacturing, technology, social change, and commercial forces. The digital format is available as an instant download after purchase.

With more than 550 illustrations, the book offers a visual record of over one hundred years of graphic design and related creative practice.

Graphic Design: Book Overview

Stephen J. Eskilson traces the evolution of graphic design through major movements, technologies, institutions, and visual styles. The discussion begins with Victorian reformers, mass-market advertising, new printing technologies, and Art Nouveau.

Later chapters examine modernist design, wartime propaganda, Dada, De Stijl, the Russian Revolution, Constructivism, the Bauhaus, the New Typography, the International Style, Art Deco, and Postmodernism. The final chapter considers contemporary design, including grunge, comic book and graffiti aesthetics, historicism, appropriation, web design, motion graphics, and leading contemporary designers and firms.

The second edition features revised text throughout, over 80 new images, a new chapter on nineteenth-century design, and expanded sections on the Swiss Style, Postmodernism, and contemporary design. It is intended for students, practicing designers, and graphic design enthusiasts.

What You’ll Discover Inside

• The origins of type and typography, from Gutenberg to Bodoni.
• The nineteenth-century expansion of graphic design through industrialization, advertising, photography, newspapers, posters, and new technologies.
• Art Nouveau in France, Britain, Scotland, Austria, Germany, and related design contexts.
• Sachplakat, First World War propaganda, Dada, Cubism, Futurism, and Art Deco.
• De Stijl, Russian Suprematism, Constructivism, photomontage, and film posters.
• The Bauhaus, the New Typography, the International Style, and postwar design.
• Contemporary practices involving technology, web design, motion graphics, historicism, appropriation, grunge, comic book, and graffiti aesthetics.

Why This Book Matters

This volume provides a broad historical reference for understanding how graphic design developed alongside manufacturing, technology, politics, social change, and commercial culture.

Its chronological structure and extensive visual documentation connect major design movements with the people, institutions, and styles that shaped them. The revised second edition is especially relevant to readers studying design history or contemporary graphic practice.

Book Details

Device Compatibility

This is a digital download, and no physical book will be shipped. Access is available after purchase through the provided download.

The PDF works with appropriate Kindle apps, tablets, desktop computers, mobile devices, and compatible reading apps. Device features may vary according to the application used.

FAQ

When can I access the book?
Access is available after purchase through the instant digital download.

Will I receive a physical copy?
No. This product is a digital PDF download, with no physical shipping.

Which devices support the file?
The PDF can be opened with appropriate Kindle apps, tablets, desktop computers, mobile devices, and compatible reading apps.

Download this digital edition for reference while studying graphic design history, typography, visual communication, and related design movements.