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Remeber when references used to come from books?
One of my favorite design references is The History of Design 1890–1959. I keep coming back to it whenever I want to get away from the same references that circulate online. A few pages I bookmarked:
1️⃣ Henry van de Velde — one of the founding figures of Art Nouveau, and a great example of how typography and ornament could become one visual language.
2️⃣ Edward Johnston, London Transport — a completely different approach, where typography becomes a functional system rather than decoration.
3️⃣ Schweppes, 1908 — an anonymous advertisement that shows how much personality early commercial graphics could have.
4️⃣ Erberto Carboni, Barilla, 1953 — a reminder that packaging and advertising can become part of a brand's visual identity long before we start calling it “branding.”
Now your turn: what’s one design book, archive, or weird reference source you’d recommend to another designer? Drop it below 👇
The Edward Johnston pick is such a good example of restraint actually being the design decision. For me it's old apothecary packaging, tiny type, zero color, and it still had to feel trustworthy. Do you keep a physical copy of the book or do you mostly reference the pages digitally?
I have the book!! I look at it every now and then, it's lovely!
The van de Velde pick made me smile, that whiplash line work still feels weirdly modern. Which spread in that book do you end up opening the most when you're stuck?
nothing in particular! I just turn the pages and go over it randomly to unblock myself a bit
You nailed the overall mood here. The details just reinforce it nicely.
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Related posts
What did ads look like before typograhy was a file you could have in your computer and replicate multiple times?
Another little tour through The History of Design 1890–1959, this time looking specifically at how designers were treating type as an image rather than simply information. Previous post here.
Eugène Grasset, 1893 — beautifully controlled lettering and organic forms.
Toulouse-Lautrec, 1903 — expressive lettering becoming part of the energy of the poster.
Ernst Klimt, 1892 — decorative type working alongside illustration.
Louis Rhead, Harper's Bazar, 1892 — type, image, and ornament interacting as one visual system.
What I love about these references is that the type is part of the image.
Show me one historical typographic composition you’d steal inspiration from today. 👀
The Beggarstaffs' cut-paper posters from the late 1890s — the lettering sits in the gaps the shapes leave rather than on top of them. I still think about that when a wordmark has to live inside a busy pack layout: let the silhouette decide where the type goes instead of the grid.
Playing around with trendy typography to create posters.✴️
Just got some free time to spark my own creativity outside of clients’ directions!
What do you like to do in your free time?
