Eugene weekly., December 14, 2017, Image 18

BY DESIGN
A SELECTION OF
BOOKS ON GRAPHIC ART
House Industries:
The Process is the Inspiration
by Andy Cruz, Rich Roat and Den Barber. Watson-Guptill, $50.
In the world of contemporary type foundries, House In-
dustries stands alone as being much more than mere creators
of type. From day one House, founded in the ’90s, has been
carving out some truly iconic typefaces, inspired by every-
thing from the giants of hot rod culture to heroes of Ameri-
can architectural and industrial design. Where we would
stand on the shoulders of giants, House Industries often
works hand-in-hand with them. Be they reviving the strokes
of adroit sign painters or the work of Mid-Century Modern
masters of American craft, House stops at nothing in the
pursuit of the process. This collection is an archival record
of the origins of House type, design and craft production,
encompassing everything in a quintessentially gilded mid-
century glaze. Beautifully designed and masterfully printed
— spot glosses, metallic inks and paper changes abound —
you can’t have too much of a good thing when House is at
the wheel. Sadly, House founder Rich Roat died Nov. 29.
— Trask Bedortha
Conclusion detail ©Carlos Alejandro — Courtesy of House Industries. Reprinted with permission from
House Industries: The Process Is the Inspiration by House Industries, copyright (c) 2017. Published by
Watson-Guptill, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
Junk Type:
Typography,
Lettering,
Badges, Logos
by Bill Rose. Universe, $35.
What does sifting through a
century of dander left behind by
lumbering, unchecked American
consumerism yield? Pure icono-
graphic gems tempered in the re-
straint of the tradesman designer
and the imposition of the bottom
line. The limited palettes and letter-
ing emblematic of packaging past
are stacked together, page after
page, in this go-to catalogue of the
obsolete. Junk Type is a great foray
into the art of badge hunting, and
an extensive reference to economy
of design. — Trask Bedortha
Saul Bass:
A Life in Film and Design
by Jennifer Bass and Pat Kirkham, with a foreword by
Martin Scorsese. Laurence King Publishing, $95.
Saul Bass' work for the film Vertigo. Detail reprinted with per-
mission from Saul Bass: A Life in Film and Design by Jennifer
Bass and Pat Kirkham. Published by Laurence King Publishing.
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December 14, 2017 • eugeneweekly.com
Saul Bass is perhaps one of the most recognized
names in design. From film to corporate identity,
his prolific work defined styles and shaped visual
communication for decades, and this monograph of
Bass’ work catalogues the life and contributions of
one of the patron saints of modern graphic design.
From posters and credit designs to the storyboard-
ing of Psycho’s most iconic scene, Bass played a
huge roll in Hitchcock’s greatest films. His work in
identity design all but dictated the practice and pitch
of contemporary branding systems. If you don’t be-
lieve that art exists in such corporate or commercial
banalities, you are mistaken. Distilled and balanced,
not purely practical nor viscerally driven, Saul Bass
was an artist excelling at technique and the complete
consideration of the medium. This collection is an
amazing examination of his process, his collabora-
tions and his life’s work. — Trask Bedortha