Shillington Book Club: Our 10 Favourite Design Books

As designers we can’t resist the look and feel of a good piece of print, from coveted hardbacks to faithful resource guides they are the cornerstone of our creative tool kit. After eagerly sharing 50 Essential Books Every Graphic Designer Should Read we wanted to find out exactly what our teaching team have in their own personal libraries.

So, this year we launched Shillington Book Club, a chance for our global team to share their favourite design books. From typography based books to monographs showcasing design legends there’s something for everyone in 2017’s round up.

1. Lance Wyman: The Monograph by Unit Editions

Part-time London teacher Emma Stokes kicked off our Shillington Book Club with ‘Lance Wyman: The Monograph’, a hardback piece of beauty by Unit Editions.

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2. The Graphic Design Idea Book by Steven Heller & Gail Anderson

Sometimes you just need a book which covers an entire theme and what better theme to choose than ‘ideas’. Full-time London teacher Fiona Martin sang her praises for Steven Heller’s ‘The Graphic Design Idea Book’ for the second edition of our Book Club.

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3. Women in Graphic Design by Gerda Breuer & Julia Meer

“Are women today judged solely on their work? Why is there still a wage gap?”—New York Full-time teacher Shanti Sparrow addressed a pertinent topic on female pay in the design industry with ‘Women in Graphic Design’.

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4. House by House Industries

Now for something a little different. Full-time Manchester Teacher Ed Baptist showed us his inner fan boy with this share of House Industries’ process led book, ‘House’.

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5. The Art of Looking Sideways by Alan Fletcher

The one book every graphic designer must have in their library. Full-time New York Teacher Adam Dudd shared this classic design bible from Alan Fletcher.

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6. My Way to Typography by Wolfgang Weingart 

It wouldn’t be a graphic design book club without featuring a typography legend. UK Director Sarah McHugh chose Wolfgang Weingart’s ‘My Way to Typography’ as her favourite book.

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7. Typorama, The Graphic Work of Philippe Apeloig by Alice Morgaine

More typography appreciation from Full-time London teacher Amy Prus as she reviewed French Typographer Philip Apeloig’s book.

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8. Dangerous Curves by Doyald Young

Full-time New York Teacher Nikita Prokhorov showed us some truly breath taking calligraphy with Doyald Young’s Dangerous Curves.

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9. Pretty Much Everything by Aaron Draplin

Visual paradise in the form of Aaron Draplin’s Pretty Much Everything. Unsurprisingly packed full of literally everything, logos, patches, thumbnails—you name it. Props to Full-time London teacher Andy Judd for sharing this one.

Read the full review here

10. A Life In Letterpress by Alan Kitching

To round up this year’s book club we had an extra special feature from London Part-Time teacher Jen Dennis. Following a guest lecture from Alan Kitching at Shillington London Jen shared ‘A Life in Letterpress’ along with an interview with the letterpress god himself.

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So there you have it, our 10 favourite design books of 2017 from the Shillington Book Club. Are there any books we should have featured? Tweet us your thoughts and we will keep it in mind for when we return with more inspiring reads in 2018. 

If you’re big into books check our other book related posts; 50 Essential Books Every Graphic Designer Should Read or Sketchbook Advice for Designers.

Curious about studying design at Shillington in New York, London, Manchester, Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane?  Contact us to find out more or come along to an Info Sessions.