Design Standards Manuals

The NASA Graphics Standards Manual, by Richard Danne and Bruce Blackburn, is a futuristic vision for an agency at the cutting edge of science and exploration. Housed in a special anti-static package, the book features a foreword by Richard Danne, an essay by Christopher Bonanos, scans of the original manual (from Danne's personal copy), reproductions of the original NASA 35mm slide presentation, and scans of the Managers Guide, a follow-up booklet distributed by NASA.

In 1970, President Richard Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to confront environmental pollution and protect the health of the American people. One of the EPA's top priorities was consolidating numerous state offices to more efficiently carry out its goal of "working for a cleaner, healthier environment for the American people." But there was one area in which the EPA--like many government agencies of the time--was terribly inefficient: their graphic design and communications department. Millions of dollars were being wasted annually due to nonstandardized formats, inefficient processes and almost everything being designed from scratch. In 1977 the EPA began working with the legendary New York design firm Chermayeff & Geismar (now Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv, or CGH), responsible for some of the most recognizable visual identities in the world, such as Chase Bank, PBS, National Geographic, the Smithsonian Institution, Mobil Oil and NBC. Partners Ivan Chermayeff, Tom Geismar and Steff Geissbuhler set about tackling this problem. The result was the 1977 US Environmental Protection Agency Graphic Standards System. Forty years later, Jesse Reed & Hamish Smyth--creators of the NYCTA and NASA Graphics Standards Manual reissues--have partnered with CGH and AIGA, the US's oldest and largest professional organization for design, to publish this classic graphic standards EPA manual as a hardcover volume. Each page is reproduced at the same size as the original three-ring binder pages, using the same vibrant Pantone inks with a total of 14 colors.

This book, the most comprehensive and basic working tool available to the design professional, encompasses every area of expertise required in the practice of contemporary interior design. Architects, interior designers, drafters, specifiers, and designers and manufacturers of building materials, furnishings, and equipment for interiors will find essential specification data and thousands of fully metricated, dimensioned drawings of interiors and the components of interiors. The range is vast: materials that range from hinges for cabinet doors to ceramic tiles for tub enclosures; drawings of standard and custom millwork for hundreds of specific interior applications; detailed dimensioned plans for custom casework; fully dimensioned room layouts keyed to drawings of individual details; illustrations, with dimensions, of standard and special-purpose furnishings and equipment. Throughout, acknowledged industry standards are given as are specifications and notes about usage. Vital information about flammability and life safety factors and accessible barrier-free requirements is also given wherever it is applicable. To facilitate quick access, the book is organized in three parts, with CSI Masterformat code numbers used throughout. Part one covers standard dimensions of manufactured interior components, including basic graphic and design elements; architectural millwork and hardware; partitions and doors; windows and skylights; interior finishes, specialties, and equipment; stairs and ramps; and lighting. The second part deals with residential graphic and design standards, and the third part covers commercial graphic and design standards public washrooms, commercial offices, banks, retail spaces, health studios, restaurants and bars, hotels and motels, medical and dental offices, libraries, and places of worship. A complete resource book, "Interior Graphic and Design Standards" includes lists of industry associations, glossaries of terms, size charts, conversion tables, and practical checklists of steps in the design process. There is an extensive keyword index, giving page references as well as CSI Masterformat code numbers, and a complete alphabetical listing of data sources."

The NASA Graphics Standards Manual: Remastered Edition is a modern spin on the original NASA Graphics Standards Manual published in 1976 and puts it into a new and clean format. Using high-resolution scans of the original book, over two-hundred man-hours were spent in recreating and remastering the original drawings with very fine details. This book is not in the same format as the original, as the original manual was in a binder. However, much care was taken in ensuring the correct image and font proportions were used. The original double-spread pages were reformatted to fit onto two single facing pages. Photos from the original book were replaced with the original photos sourced from the NASA library, and missing photos were replaced with similar photos obtained from the NASA library. This edition is published with the highest quality print-on-demand techniques along with the most vivid color, and printed on thick 70 lb. paper. Fine type sized as small as three point Helvetica is still legible, and the reproduced drawings are clean and crisp. If you are a fan of NASA, then this book is a great addition to your NASA library.

The evolving design of New York subway ephemera: a collector's story New York City Transit Authority: Objects originated as a photography experiment. In 2011, New York photographer Brian Kelley began documenting collections of used MetroCards in his Brooklyn studio, arranging them in various grids with the goal of perfecting the lighting of an image. His brother suggested he make the grids more interesting by finding other types of cards. Having exhausted his search for discarded MetroCards in many of the city's 472 subway stations, Kelley turned to eBay for new finds. The online rabbit-hole gave him a crash course in the history of NYC transportation. He discovered tokens dating back to 1860, a ticket stub from 1885 when it cost three cents to take the train across the Brooklyn Bridge, as well as patches, matchbooks, tokens, timetables, pins and signs, posting his photographs of these finds on Tumblr and Instagram. Six years on, many MTA employees follow and advocate his project, sometimes contacting him with information and tips on rare items. As the collection grew, Kelley recognized that there were no comparable digital archives documenting the city's transportation evolution. New York City Transit Authority: Objects is a story told through the evolving design that spans decades of the city's history. Kelley's objects tell a greater story of New York's past. For him, The NYCTA Project remains a photography experiment and self-funded hobby, archiving the culture of his home city. For the reader, it's an intimate view of the city's history that merges design and infrastructure over the past 150 years.