The University of the Arts Libraries • Research Tools and Resources • Subject and Reference Guides

GRAPHIC DESIGN RESOURCES

This is a research guide for finding materials on graphic design in the Greenfield Library at the University of the Arts. Reference materials are listed first, followed by a list of suggested subject headings for searching library catalogs. Periodical indexes to magazine articles and newspapers are next, followed by links to style manuals and finally Web sites. If you have questions about this topic please see the librarian's e-mail address at the end of this document.

You may also be interested in the Book Arts subject guide, the Communication subject guide, or the Typography subject guide.

Reference materials || Searching the Catalog by Subject || Periodical Indexes || Design Annuals ||Style Manuals || Web Sites

REFERENCE MATERIALS

The first place to look when beginning research on a topic is in reference material: specialized dictionaries, encyclopedias or handbooks. These allow you to check names, dates and places, find additional information, look up unknown terms, and check for the proper spelling of words. They are particularly helpful for finding basic background information on a topic, and are often the only place many students may need to look to find answers to their questions. They may include bibliographies (lists of additional materials on a topic, usually considered by the author to be the best materials on that topic, or the materials the author used to write their article) that you can use to find other materials.

Call numbers are for the Greenfield Library unless otherwise indicated. Reference books are indicated by REF before the call number.

Annotations in quotes are taken from the series, American Reference Books Annual (ARBA), Greenfield REF 011.02 Am35. The acronym ARBA is followed by the volume year, the entry number and the page number.

American graphic design : a guide to the literature. Compiled by Ellen Mazur Thomson. Greenwood Press, 1992.
REF 016.7416 T383a

"Graphic design sources usually are appended to comprehensive art or design bibliographies. When that occurs the selective listings do not represent the field adequately. Thomson, a printmaker, graphic designer, and librarian, has rectified this lack of focus with a thorough guide. She includes the art (e.g., color, theory, history) and the applied art (e.g., advertising, posters, illustration, photography) of graphic design. Under 20 chapter headings she lists the best dictionaries and encyclopedias, bibliographies, biographical references, creative and talent directories, directories of collections, auction catalogs and sales records, indexes, online databases and CD-ROMs, and special subject monographs on the topic." ARBA 1994, entry 1059, p. 431.

Ambrose, Gavin and Paul Harris. The visual dictionary of graphic design. Lausanne; Worthing: AVA Publishing; New York: Watson-Guptill [distributor], c2006..
REF 741.603 Am18v

Nice one-page definitions for each entry, usually with a large visual example. Brief timeline at the back.

Byars, Mel. The design encyclopedia. Wiley, 1994.
REF 745.403 B99d

"This encyclopedia provides information on designers, design firms, movements, design manufacturers, artists' groups, and design materials of the past 125 years. Designers of furniture, textiles, glass, metalware, wallpaper, and interiors, as well as ceramicists, industrial designers, and interior architects are included. … Entries for designers include a general description, birth and death dates, education, biography, exhibition activities and awards, and a brief bibliography. The bibliography includes citations that support the information provided in the entry and in many cases leads to additional information." ARBA 1995

Campbell, Alastair. The designer's lexicon : the illustrated dictionary of design, printing, and computer terms. Chronicle Books, 2000.
REF 741.603 C152d

Contemporary designers. 3rd ed. St. James Press, c1997.
REF 745.4492 C767 1997

Biographical, bibliographical, and critical information on designers. If your designer is in this book, you're off to an excellent start with your research. See page 962 for the list of graphic designers included.

Dictionary of 20th-century design. By John Pile. Facts on File, 1990.
REF 745.444203 P642d

"In the twentieth century, design has come to be regarded as a discipline with its own identity that should ultimately elevate taste and production standards for everybody. … This work covers designers, styles and periods, manufacturers, technical terms, materials, schools and other design institutions, and notable periodicals that focus squarely on design as their central theme. … The writing style is highly readable while packed with facts." ARBA 1992

The Facts on File dictionary of design and designers. By Simon Jervis. Facts on File, 1984.
REF 745.403 J488f

"The emphasis of this dictionary is on historical design and designers, providing brief biographies of designers from 1450 to the present, including minor as well as major figures. The scope is broad, listing noted patrons and historians as well as designers; important exhibitions, especially those of the nineteenth century; schools and institutions; and major serial and periodical publications." ARBA 1985

Forms, folds and sizes: all the details graphic designers need to know but can never find. By Poppy Evans. Gloucester, Mass. : Rockport Publishers, c2004.
REF 686.2 Ev164f

What a great little book! Contains chapters on: measurement conversion charts; copyright and trademark standards; proofreading and copywriting; imaging and color; type; paper; bindings and folds; envelopes and folders; packaging styles; postal standards; bar code standards; printing and finishing; plus a glossary, bibliography, and process color finder charts.

Glaister, Geoffrey Ashall. An encyclopedia of the book. World Publishing, 1960.
REF 655 G45

"Containing nearly 4,000 entries of defined terms, Glaister's encyclopedia remains the definitive source on the book as an object and on bookmaking as a trade. … Entries vary in length from a few to more than 3,000 words, with the average being about 80 words. There are four appendixes: a sample of different specimens of typeface, a listing of Latin names used in early imprints, British proof-correction symbols, adn a bibliography of further readings for the true bibliophile. For this printing of Glaister's standard work, retired librarian Donald Farren has changed the alphabetizing to a letter-by-letter arrangement, from the previous word-by-word system." ARBA 1997, entry 554, p. 250

International encyclopedia of communications. Oxford University Press, c1989.
REF 001.51 In8b v.1-4

Check the index (volume 4) for graphic design and other subjects. The index entry is Graphics (the main entry is 10 pages long with an 8-item bibliography) with subheadings for cartography, computer graphics, design, matrix theory, perception, semiology of graphics, and signage. Each article has a selected bibliography at the end. A great place to start!

Julier, Guy. The Thames and Hudson encyclopedia of 20th century design and designers. Thames and Hudson, 1993.
745.4442 J944t

General information on design history and designers.

Livingston, Alan and Isabella. The Thames and Hudson encyclopaedia of graphic design and designers. Thames and Hudson, 1992.
REF 741.603 L762t

Really more of a dictionary, but a great little book to have. Lots of small black and white illustrations.

Pocket pal : a graphic arts production handbook. International Paper Company, 1992.
REF 686.208 P751 1992

Provides a short history of printing, covers type and typesetting, copy preparation, graphic arts photography, proofreaders' marks, stripping and imposition, platemaking, paper, inks, etc.

Stone, Bernard. The graphic artists' illustrated glossary. Prentice-Hall, 1987.
REF 686.203 St71g

Who's who in graphic design : profiles of more than 300 leading graphic designers from 46 countries, including 1500 illustrations. Zurich : Benteli-Werd Verlags, c1994.
REF 741.60922 W62h

Reference materials || Searching the Catalog by Subject || Periodical Indexes || Design Annuals ||Style Manuals || Web Sites || Go to Top

Searching the Catalog by Subject

The University Libraries combine their holdings in one online catalog. Use the University Libraries catalog to find books, videos, CDs, scores, journal titles, etc. To locate all of the materials the library holds on a topic, it is most efficient to search by Subject. The subject headings below are linked to take you right to a subject search in the UArts catalog. These subject headings are standard and are used in most libraries.

Notice that "graphic design" is not a subject heading except when used with the subheading "typography." Use GRAPHIC ARTS instead.

Reference materials || Searching the Catalog by Subject || Periodical Indexes || Design Annuals ||Style Manuals || Web Sites || Go to Top

PERIODICAL INDEXES

Magazine and journal articles will always be the best place to look for current information on your topic. Periodical indexes are research tools that allow you to search for articles in journals and magazines.

Go to the library's Research Tools and Resources page for a list of the UArts Libraries' subscription databases, indexes, and reference works.

I've found articles I want to read. Now what?
There are different ways to find an article once you retrieve a citation in the index:

• See if there is a link in the index you're using to a full-text article online and download it or e-mail it to yourself.


• Check to see if our library holds the journal title. Look up the journal title or the ISSN*** in the catalog and look at the holdings.


• ***What is an ISSN? ISSN stands for International Standard Serial Number and is a unique number for a magazine or journal (not individual articles, but the magazine/journal title itself). You can use it in the UArts Libraries catalog and in many periodical indexes and databases. Searching with a number is much more precise than typing out a long title.


• Use interlibrary loan to request materials not owned by the UArts Libraries.


• See what other libraries in the area hold the journal.

DESIGN ANNUALS

Below is a list of design annuals held by the Greenfield Library. These annuals are a great way to see current and past trends in design. They are housed in the periodicals area on the lower level of the library. Note that no closing date in the "LIB. HAS" statement in the library catalog means that the annual is still received every year.

Thanks to UArts reference librarian Mary Louise Castaldi for compiling this section.

AIGA graphic design USA : the annual of the American Institute of Graphic Arts.
Greenfield has no. 1 (1979), no. 3-5 (1981-1983).
Continued by Graphic Design USA

Graphic Design USA
Greenfield has no. 7 (1986) - no. 20 (2000). [no. 14 missing]
Continued by 365 : AIGA Year in Design

365 : AIGA Year in Design
Greenfield has no. 21, 2001 -

Graphis Annual
appears under the titles GRAPHIS ANNUAL, GRAPHIS DESIGN ANNUAL, DESIGN ANNUAL
Greenfield has 1952/53 -

Penrose Annual
Greenfield has v. 38 (1936) - v. 74 (1982).

Publication Design Annual
Greenfield has no. 20 (1986) - .

Typography : The Annual of the Type Directors Club. (Type Directors Club, U.S.)
Greenfield has v. 1 (1980) - . vol. 2, 4 missing.

Reference materials || Searching the Catalog by Subject || Periodical Indexes || Design Annuals ||Style Manuals || Web Sites || Go to Top

STYLE MANUALS: CITING YOUR SOURCES

GRAPHIC DESIGN SITES ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB

Searching the Web can be overwhelming. If you are using the Internet for research you want to choose sites that meet the standards of accuracy, currency and authority.

Below are just a few graphic design-related sites that may be of interest to the University of the Arts community.

Searching for graphic design on the Internet always retrieves numerous commercial pages about fonts. If you know of any good sites that cover the history or more academic side of graphic design, please send them to me at the e-mail address below. Thank you.

AIGA: American Institute of Graphic Arts
http://www.aiga.org/

AIGA: Artist Video Series
http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/artist-video-series
Hillman Curtis video interviews with David Carson, Milton Glaser, Stefan Sagmeister, Paula Scher, and James Victore.

AIGA Philadelphia Chapter
http://philadelphia.aiga.org/

American Memory from the Library of Congress

http://memory.loc.gov/
A huge image database from the Library of Congress. A bit daunting to search, but one way to find images is to click on Collection Finder then List All Collections. You'll see a list of collections such as The Emergence of Advertising in America: 1850-1920. There are other collections such as Origins of American Animation, 1900-1921, complete with movies.

Art Directors Club
http://www.adcglobal.org/

Art Directors Club of Philadelphia
http://www.adcp.org/
See their "Links" and "Resources".

Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum
http://www.si.edu/ndm/

Graphis
http://www.graphis.com/
Links to Graphis magazine, books, etc.

Intute: Arts and Humanities
http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/
"Artifact and Humbul, two of the hubs of the Resource Discovery Network (RDN), have been integrated to create Intute: Arts and Humanities, a subject group of Intute. In combining the resources and services of these hubs, the Arts and Humanities service of Intute offers an easy-to-use and powerful tool for discovering the best Internet resources for education and research in Creative Arts and Humanities. ... Staff are based in the University of Oxford, Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of the Arts London. The group is led by the Research Technologies Service at Oxford University Computing Services." quoted copied from About Intute: Arts and Humanities, 24 January 2008.

Print
http://www.printmag.com/
"Print - America's Graphic Design Magazine"

The University of the Arts. College of Art and Design. Graphic Design Department.
http://www.uarts.edu/gd/index.html
See the UArts Graphic Design Department's Web page, in particular under "Students/Resources" where there are links to "Essential Books" and "Design Resources."

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Send questions or remarks about this page to Sara MacDonald, Public Services Librarian, SMacDonald@uarts.edu.
Last updated 07 March 2008 sjm

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