Graphic Design Play Book: An Exploration of Visual Thinking

An entertaining and highly original introduction to graphic design, the Graphic Design Play Book uses puzzles and visual challenges to demonstrate how typography, signage, posters and branding work.

Through a series of games and activities, including spot the difference, matching games, drawing and dot-to-dot, readers are introduced to concepts and techniques in an engaging and interactive way. Further explanation and information is provided by solution pages and a glossary, and a loose-leaf section contains stickers, die-cut templates, and coloured paper to help readers complete the activities.

Illustrated with typefaces, posters and pictograms by distinguished designers including Otl Aicher, Pierre Di Sciullo, Otto Neurath and Gerd Arntz, the book will be enjoyed both by graphic designers, and anyone interested in finding out more about visual communication.

An excerpt from the book:

How many ways are there of saying ‘hello’ ? Probably a zillion. And there are surely just as many ways of writing it. In CAPITALS, and with an exclamation mark ! Or with a question mark ? Or maybe both ?! As a tiny black word in the middle of a white page ; or with large, multi-coloured, dancing letters ; maybe with a simple shape or an image.

Being interested in graphic design means looking at and understanding the world around us. And being aware of the multitude of signs that shape our daily life day after day and freight it with meaning – whether it’s a stop sign, a cornflakes packet, a psychedelic album cover, a seductive headline on the cover of a magazine, the more subtle typography of a page in a novel, a flashing pharmacy sign or the credits of a sci-fi film.

Thinking about this plethora of signs was what led us to conceive this introduction to graphic design as a collection of beacons and benchmarks – as a toolbox for exploring and learning in a simple and intuitive way through play, alone or with others, whether you’re a child or an adult. These are experiments, a series of suggestions, with no right or wrong answers.

The four sections of this book – typography, posters, signs, identity – are all invitations to dive in, explore and let your eyes and your hands take you on a voyage of discovery! – Sophie Cure and Aurélien Farina

About the Authors:

Aurélien Farina is a French–Swiss graphic designer based in Paris. He founded Paper! Tiger! studio in 2011, specializing in editorial and print design.

Sophie Cure is a graphic designer based in Paris. She has run her own studio since 2012, focusing on visual identities, editorial design and educational tools.