1000 Design Classics

This compendium of “the most timeless, innovative, influential, pivotal, and, above all, beautiful objects” has been updated–there was a 2006 first edition—to include more items created in this century and more designed by women and others underrepresented in the previous work and in the design world. It is also now one oversized volume, rather than the previous three. The resulting work is a fascinating and useful history of design, needs and desires, and taste. The catalog showcases everything; there are the practical objects, such as sheep shears; the fanciful, including a handkerchief-inspired vase; the huge, such as beautifully designed planes and cars; and the tiny, such as La Concha teaspoons. It must also be said that there is a wild abundance of chairs. Each entry includes a large, clear color photo of the item in question, its name, and the name of the designer and their company, if any. This data is complimented by a narrative history of how the object was conceived, the design movement that it was a part of, the designer’s motivations, and other details necessary to show the milieu the item appeared in, such as how it was marketed and received. The index includes designer and company names, along with the names of objects, making it a handy reference as well as a great gift item.