Design of the 20th Century

by Charlotte Fiell, Peter Fiell

With over 400 detailed entries in alphabetical order, this volume offers one of the largest and most up-to-date illustrated works on international design in the 20th century. Accompanies the exhibit, "A Century of Design, Part I: 1900-1925, " December 1999-April 2000 at the Met in New York. 780 illustrations.

Genres: Design, Art, Nonfiction, Architecture, Reference, Interior Design, Art Design

768 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1999

About the author

Charlotte Fiell is a leading authority on the history, theory and criticism of design and, to date, has written 60 books on the subject.

Charlotte initially studied at Heatherley School of Fine Art in London and then later at the British Institute in Florence. She subsequently took a BA(Hons) degree in the History of Drawing and Printmaking with Material Science at Camberwell College of Arts (UAL), London. Following on from this, she trained at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike Taschen's similar Modern Art volume, this is not a book you just read straight through but one you browse and pick out designs that appeal to you. I didn't find it super rewarding but it did establish some names (almost all white European men) in my mind for future reference.

[fredi · Rating 3 out of 5]

why is it sorted alphabetical???

[KaSaBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book surprised me. Usually, I regard encyclopedias a fairly boring read. Worse still, they are oftentimes not comprehensive enough to answer my questions. Not so, here. With the 2012 edition of their design bible, Charlotte and Peter Fiell accomplished something remarkable: They managed to condense the complex and varied history of 20th century design into an accessible, comprehensive and beautifully illustrated master piece. The book lends itself well to act as a reference to a single piece of information. But it may prove equally useful as entry point to a larger research project. Considering that it has roughly 750 pages, it could be pretty hefty. Interestingly, it is not! Its format (approximately A5) makes it portable and thus very "user-friendly."

[Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mid-century design encyclopedia that is highly engaging and interesting, this was my introduction to a lot of the artists/movements involved in interior design, the decorative arts, and material culture in general. The Taschen series are always a good option if you're interested in a topic because they're affordable, high quality, and highly researched.

[Nate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good-looking book. Nice jacket and hardcover design. However, it spends a criminally short amount of time on each designer for such an incredibly long book. I also didn't care for the way the content was laid out; it was a combination of design styles and designers in alphabetical order. I did not find this book useful for inspiration.

[haven ⋄ f (hiatus) · Rating 3 out of 5]

a great resource for design BUT is 70% chairs. i wish it was slightly better organized too, having assorted art/design movements or term definitions in-between designers was a little confusing. however i did learn a lot once i started skipping the chair entries

[Luca Moise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A high variety of engaging mid-century design pieces!

[Jan Tománek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Takový stručný přehled o deisgnerech 20. století, mířený spíše na lidi v designu se již orientující, což já nejsem, takže jsem nebyl nikterak potěšen tím, že se v knize dost často opakovalo: "Tento autor je známý výrobkem X a na další stránce najdete obrázek výrobku Y", což se sice hodí někomu, kdo si rozšiřuje znalosti, ne pro toho, kdo teprve získává ty zákkladní. Jinak Celkem dobrá kniha.

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

zoe actually gave me this book except my copy has a different cover. i love it. thanks zoe!

[Linda Fast · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written book of design concepts of the 20th century. A complete historic representation of designers, architects, artists ect. and well documented photos.

[Ralph Zoontjens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of the best and most iconic designs of the 20th century with a lot of emphasis on furniture. It was the first book on design I ever bought, and I still enjoy it.

[Claudia Yahany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy bonito libro de referencias.