Design The Key Concepts

An introductory guide to fundamental design concepts such as thinking, service, context, interaction, experience, and systems.

Design is now one of the world's major industries - from the rarified world of elite designers creating high-end products and environments for wealthy consumers to the increasingly pervasive culture of brand management and mass consumption.The study of Design involves the analysis of both the form, function and style of material artefacts and their ideological, aesthetic, political, cultural, technological and economic contexts. Design: the key concepts guides the reader through this complex field, carefully illustrating its arguments with case studies and images.As well as examining the contemporary world of design, the book also assesses how design has changed through history, especially since industrialisation, and how writers, theorists and critics have influenced the history of design and its practice.Design: the key concepts presents a provocative, concise and accessible overview for students coming to Design for the first time.

Developing Your Design Process is your primary source for acquiring knowledge of how and why you design. It will help you understand how architects think as well as learn why you should educate yourself about design culture. You'll explore the spark of imagination that leads to a strong concept, realize the importance of sketching and rough drafts, focus your original concept to make your abstract idea visible, and finally step away for a moment to critically question your concept by identifying its strengths and weaknesses. You'll also be introduced to the language of design, architectural terminology, historic precedents, and designers, in addition to the why, what, and how of the design process. The book is illustrated throughout with international examples of work by professionals and students in the discipline of architecture, and other related design professions.

This is an essential student's guide to design - its practice, its theory and its history. Respected design writer Catherine McDermott draws from a wide range of international examples.

This is the essential student’s guide to Design – its practice, its theory and its history. Respected design writer Catherine McDermott draws from a wide range of international examples.

Graphics are key to the user experience of online content, especially now that users are accessing that content on a multitude of devices: smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktops. This book provides foundational methodology for optimal use of graphics that begins with HTML and CSS, and delves into the worlds of typography, color, transparency, accessibility, imagery, and layout for optimal delivery on all the different devices people use today. It serves beginners and intermediate web builders alike with a complete foundation needed to create successful illustrative and navigational imagery for web and mobile. Coverage includes: lessons on typography, icons, color, and images the latest information on HTML5, CSS3, and other modern technologies in-depth exploration of image formats: GIF, PNG, JPEG, and SVG ways to employ adaptive strategies for responsive web design

As everyday tasks grow more confusing, and as social and global problems grow more complex, the information designer's role in bringing clarity has reached a new level of importance. In order to have a positive impact, they must go beyond conventional approaches to uncover real needs, make insightful connections, and develop effective solutions. Information Design Unbound provides a clear, engaging introduction to the field, and prepares students to be strategic thinkers and visual problem solvers who can confidently make sense in a changing world. Sheila Pontis and Michael Babwahsingh present a holistic view of information design, synthesizing decades of research, cross-disciplinary knowledge, and emerging practices. The book opens by laying a foundation in the field, first painting the bigger picture of what it is and how it originated, before explaining the scientific and cultural dimensions of how people perceive and understand visual information. A discussion of professional practices, ethical considerations, and the expanding scale of challenges sheds light on the day-to-day work of information designers today. Detailed chapters then delve into the four areas that are integral to all types of information design work: visual thinking, research, sensemaking, and design. The final section of the book puts everything together, with detailed project walk-throughs in areas such as icon design, instructions, wayfinding, organizational strategy, and healthcare system change. Written and designed with students' needs in mind, this book brings information design fundamentals to life: exercises allow students to put lessons directly into practice, case studies demonstrate how information designers think and work, and generous illustrations clarify concepts in a visually engaging way. Information Design Unbound helps beginning designers build the mindset and skillset to navigate visual communication challenges wherever they may arise.

"This guide to the emerging language of creative industries field is a valuable resource for researchers and students alike. Concise, extensively referenced, and accessible, this this is an exceptionally useful reference work." - Gauti Sigthorsson, Greenwich University "There could be no better guides to the conceptual map of the creative industries than John Hartley and his colleagues, pioneers in the field. This book is a clear, comprehensive and accessible tool-kit of ideas, concepts, questions and discussions which will be invaluable to students and practitioners alike. Key Concepts in Creative Industries is set to become the corner stone of an expanding and exciting field of study" - Chris Barker, University of Wollongong Creativity is an attribute of individual people, but also a feature of organizations like firms, cultural institutions and social networks. In the knowledge economy of today, creativity is of increasing value, for developing, emergent and advanced countries, and for competing cities. This book is the first to present an organized study of the key concepts that underlie and motivate the field of creative industries. Written by a world-leading team of experts, it presents readers with compact accounts of the history of terms, the debates and tensions associated with their usage, and examples of how they apply to the creative industries around the world. Crisp and relevant, this is an invaluable text for students of the creative industries across a range of disciplines, especially media, communication, economics, sociology, creative and performing arts and regional studies.