A comprehensive survey of the vital and dynamic graphic design created in the three decades before World War II, in the style variously known as Modern, Skyscraper, Jazz Style and, eventually, Art Deco. It is both a sourcebook and an inspiration for anyone interested in this period.



This book still stands as the most comprehensive survey on the dynamic graphic design in the three decades before World War II, when economic and political upheaval mixed with a wild pursuit of gaiety, luxury, modernism and elegance to produce a style known variously as Modern, Skyscraper, Jazz Style and, eventually, Art Deco. Patricia Frantz Kery covers in depth the style's sources and explores the decorative 'fine arts' that formed a bridge between the radical modern movements and Deco commercial art. There are chapters on posters, magazines, commercial design, books, and fashion and costume, each with an illustrated introductory text followed by a portfolio of stunning illustrations of works that range from the established masterpieces of Art Deco to never-before-reproduced pieces found in Europe, Latin America, the United States and Japan. Art Deco Graphics is both a sourcebook and an inspiration for designers and illustrators, art directors and photographers, scholars and collectors, and for anyone interested in the graphic style of one of the most exciting periods in history.