How Ideas are Born – serie

The 25 featured artists explain, in their own words, the creative processes behind their work, what inspires them, the strategies they use to stay fresh and creative, what distinguishes their work from that of other ceramic artists, and how they achieve this. Through examples of their most personal creations, -objects capable of affecting us emotionally, surprising us and making us think-, the artists reveal important details about their ceramic creations such as how it was made, how it was shaped and which glaze and engobe coating they used to give the clay color and texture. The reader is provided with an illuminating glimpse into each artist’s unique creative world, including the defining features of their work and some of the secrets that characterize their artistic processes. Paragons of exploration, risk and versatility, the extraordinary artists highlighted in this book rediscover thousand-year-old traditions, reinvent perspectives, transcend boundaries, tell stories and rebel from conventional expectations, creating in the process an exhilarating space where art, clay, water, air and fire meet and, ultimately, inspire. Some of the ceramists included are: BELGIUM: Ann VanHoey; CHINA: Wan Liya; NETHERLANDS: Cecil Kemperink; UK: Nicholas Lees; USA: Lauren Nauman, among others.

The book includes 60 essential rules for creating unique designs and ensuring a design message resonates with a specific audience.Graphic Design Rules is a book that comprehensively analyses graphic design, starting from the seven most basic principles that guide the choice of colour, layout and font, acting beneath the surface to make the work stable and balanced. While everyone has their own design habits, there are some common rules that every designer should pay attention to and follow, to ensure an effective and attractive composition. This book introduces readers to over 60 of these rules, applied to the main elements which dominate graphic design, organising them into three categories – colour, type & typography, image & shape – and showing how they are implemented in 40 projects. They see how artists and designers use colour to portray mood, light, depth, and point of view, while images throughout the text show how designers apply these basic elements to create logos and graphics for unique brand identities. With tips indicating what not to do to ensure a design message resonates with a specific audience, this book will help readers tell their story in a more engaging and evocative way.

A book dedicated entirely to geometric shapes, widely used by graphic designers and applied to all fields of communication.Basic geometric shapes and their various combinations have always dominated graphic design. The creative possibilities they offer are limitless, and viewers continuously interpret them consciously and unconsciously. In this book, now in paperback, readers will find many examples of why geometry is still very much relevant in today’s graphic design industry and how it is a crucial part of our visual language. Beyond their colour and size, shapes and forms determine the character and the mood of a layout, without us even realising it. They provide order and harmony in a world of imperfection and chaos. Designers know this and have been using geometric shapes as a tool for communication and visual impact since the very beginning of the profession. The broad range of case studies featured in this book demonstrates how familiar shapes can be transformed and used to convey new concepts and trends in design.

A comprehensive guide to mastering grid systems aimed at web design professionals, including case studies and expert advice to enhance usability, readability, and visual appeal in digital design.Part of a comprehensive series on web and interface design, this book is an essential resource for professionals seeking practical guidance on how to use grids effectively in digital design. The book covers key grid-related terms, the most used grid systems, and their importance in creating structured, adaptable, and user-friendly interfaces while introducing the four main grid systems commonly used in web design. The book also includes case studies and examples, sharing practical experience on how grids can improve the organisation and readability of web pages and applications. As a result, designers will learn to create visually appealing, predictable interfaces with well- structured content that enhances the user experience. This is a comprehensive, easy-to-understand guide for web and UI designers, offering the tools they need to create professional- grade, functional designs.

Ideas are not born alone. They come from a process to a large extent organized and rational but sometimes unconscious and magical. In this book we can enjoy and learn from the creative processes of great graphic designers and creative voices around the world. Here we can find impulsive design versus more cerebral design; radical and avant-garde design alongside poetic, childish, commercial, intellectual, subversive and socially oriented design. 26 designers from 15 countries show us their workspaces, their personal notebooks and their creative processes. They teach us the keys to understand what is behind those magnificent works that inspire, thrill, impact or invite us to action. In this book the creative process itself is inspiration, a unique guide to creativity with storytelling and lessons on how to live your best creative life. The book features the work and creative processes of Ralph Bauer (Netherlands/Peru), Susana Blasco (Spain), Tomasz Boguslawski (Poland), Sarah Boris (London), Chelsea Cardinal (USA), Ryan Carl (USA), André Da Loba (Portugal), Isidro Ferrer (Spain), Veronica Fuerte (Spain), Rick Griffith (USA), Sebastian Kubica (Poland), Anette Lenz (France), Jiani Lu (Canada), Alejandro Magallanes (Mexico), Veronica Majluf (Peru), Fanette Mellier (France), Cláudia Mestre (Portugal), Milimbo (Spain), Akinori Oishi (Japan), Alvaro Pecci (Spain), Stefan Sagmeister (USA), Teresa Sdralevich (Belgium), Akiko Sekimoto (Japan), Leonardo Sonnoli (Italy), Cihan Tamti (Germany), Jessica Walsh (USA).

In How Ideas Are Born, readers will find a treasure chest ofimages by 26 diverse illustrators from 12 different countriesthat the author has gathered, selected and curated for the book.The types of images and styles vary, ranging from the childlikeand naive to the poignant, suggestive and truly masterly.In addition to the 270 images, the book contains 110 drawingsand pages from notebooks and sketchbooks that take thereader deeper into the nature of each artist's work. The visualelements are complemented by revealing interviews with eachartist in which they discuss what compelled them to becomeillustrators, their inspirations, and the research, methods,personal philosophies and work processes that allow them totransform a creative impulse or an emotion into an idea, and anidea into a work of art. We learn about what drives and inspiresthem as well as the origins of their ideas and creativity, from aninnocent curiosity about shapes and colors to the desire to sharesomething fascinating and wonderful with others in a uniqueand original way. Contributors: ARGENTINA: Isol Misenta.BELGIUM: Tom Schamp. BRASIL: Flavio Morais. CANADA:Anita Kunz. FRANCE: Serge Bloch, Delphine Durand, MartinJarrie, Herve Tullet. IRELAND: Chris Haughton. ITALY: SimoneRea, Valerio Vidali. JAPAN: Yoshiko Hada. PORTUGAL: AnaBiscaia, Carolina Celas. SPAIN: Elisa Arguile, Pablo Auladell,Pep Carrio, Jesus Cisneros, Isidro Ferrer, Manuel Marsol, M.A.Perez Arteaga. SWITZERLAND: Fanny Dreyer. USA: GaryBaseman (Los Angeles, CA), Katie Benn (San Francisco, CA),Lisa Congdon (Portland, OR), Elizabeth Haidle (Portland, OR).