Search for a Book
Search for print books and/or e-books in Scholar OneSearch. There are four views in Scholar OneSearch to convey more clearly what is available domestically and internationally online, and in person at Snell Library in Boston, MA and at F. W. Olin Library at Mills in Oakland, CA.
- Boston Campus (Snell Library) Scholar OneSearchIncludes online materials and print books available at Snell Library on the Boston, MA campus.
- Oakland Campus (F. W. Olin Library) Scholar OneSearchIncludes online materials and print books available at the F. W. Olin Library on the Oakland, CA campus.
- International Campuses Scholar OneSearchIncludes online materials available to users studying at international campuses in Canada and England.
- United States Campuses Scholar OneSearchIncludes online materials available to users studying at campuses in the United States other than Boston, MA and Oakland, CA.
Requesting Print Books from the Snell Library (Boston, MA) Remote Annex
Not all print books are located at Snell Library on the Boston, MA campus. Some print books have been moved to the Remote Annex facility. To request an item located in the Snell Library Remote Annex, follow these directions:
- Make sure you are logged in to your Scholar OneSearch account
- Click the "Request" link under the item you need and submit the form
- We'll send an email when items are ready for pickup at the Help & Information desk
How to Find an E-book
For additional information about accessing e-books, consult our E-book guide.
E-book Platforms
- Art and Architecture ePortal (Yale) This link opens in a new windowImportant scholarly books on art and architecture history, decorative arts, and design, from Yale University Press. You can search the images in the books as well as the text.
- Library Stack This link opens in a new windowE-books and other digital materials from the arts, design, theory, and architecture fields. Includes often-overlooked ephemera such as artists ebooks, podcasts, filmed lectures, typefaces, and more. Some items require registration (free) to view.
Selected New Books
An Anthology of Blackness: The State of Black Design by
An adventurous collection that examines how the design field has consistently failed to attract and support Black professionals-and how to create an anti-racist, pro-Black design industry instead. An Anthology of Blackness examines the intersection of Black identity and practice, probing why the design field has failed to attract Black professionals, how Eurocentric hegemony impacts Black professionals, and how Black designers can create an anti-racist design industry. Contributing authors and creators demonstrate how to develop a pro-Black design practice of inclusivity, including Black representation in designed media, anti-racist pedagogy, and radical self-care. Through autoethnography, lived experience, scholarship, and applied research, these contributors share proven methods for creating an anti-racist and inclusive design practice. The contributions in An Anthology of Blackness include essays, opinion pieces, case studies, and visual narratives. Many contributors write from an intersectional perspective on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and ability. Each section of the book expands on community-driven concerns about the state of the design industry, design pedagogy, and design activism. Ultimately, this articulated intersection of Black identity and Black design practice reveals the power of resistance, community, and solidarity-and the hope for a more equitable future. With a foreword written by design luminary Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall, An Anthology of Blackness is a pioneering contribution to the literature of social justice. Contributors Kprecia Ambers, Jazmine Beatty, Anne H. Berry, John Brown VI, Nichole Burroughs, Antionette D. Carroll, Jillian M. Harris, Asher Kolieboi, Terrence Moline, Tracey L. Moore, Lesley-Ann Noel, Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon, Jules Porter, Stacey Robinson, Melanie Walby, Jacinda N. Walker, Kelly Walters, Jennifer White-Johnson, Maya Aduba Williams, S. Alfonso Williams
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2023
Art and Graphic Design: George Maciunas, Ed Ruscha, Sheila Levrant de Bretteville by
An innovative exploration of the intersection of graphic design and American art of the 1960s and 1970s. This fascinating study of the role that graphic design played in American art of the 1960s and 1970s focuses on the work of George Maciunas, Ed Ruscha, and Sheila Levrant de Bretteville. Examining how each of these artists utilized typography, materiality, and other graphic design aesthetics, Benoît Buquet reveals the importance of graphic design in creating a sense of coherence within the disparate international group of Fluxus artists, an elusiveness and resistance to categorization that defined much of Ruscha's brand of Pop Art, and an open and participatory visual identity for a range of feminist art practices. Rigorous and compelling scholarship and a copious illustration program that presents insightful juxtapositions of objects--some of which have never been discussed before--combine to shed new light on a period of abundant creativity and cultural transition in American art and the intimate, though often overlooked, entwinement between art and graphic design.
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2021
Designing Emotion: Methods and Strategies for Designers by
Strategies for the design process considering emotions. How does design make the indestructible character of a drill tangible? Why does a brand become a trusted friend? And what emotions should intelligent gardening tools actually radiate? The accurate communication and design of emotional worlds remain one of the greatest challenges for companies and professional design. Designing Emotion offers practical support here. Based on current research from neuroscience and psychology, the book presents tools for systematically analysing emotions and controlling them through precise use of form, colour and material. In addition to case studies and interviews, this edition offers insights into the design practice of successful companies. Provides professional design instruments for influencing emotions Includes a folding poster for the use of "emotion grid" With exclusive interviews, practical examples and analyses Available in English and German (Emotion gestalten, ISBN 9783035623840)
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2022
Digital Design: A History by
A groundbreaking history of digital design from the nineteenth century to today. Digital design has emerged as perhaps the most dynamic force in society, occupying a fluid, experimental space where product design intersects with art, film, business, engineering, theater, music, and artificial intelligence. Stephen Eskilson traces the history of digital design from its precursors in the nineteenth century to its technological and cultural ascendency today, providing a multifaceted account of a digital revolution that touches all aspects of our lives. We live in a time when silicon processors, miniaturization, and CAD-enhanced 3D design have transformed the tangible world of cars and coffee makers as well as the screen world on our phones, computers, and game systems. Eskilson provides invaluable historical perspective to help readers better understand how digital design has become such a vibrant feature of the contemporary landscape. He covers topics ranging from graphic and product design to type, web design, architecture, data visualization, and virtual reality. Along the way, he paints compelling portraits of key innovators behind this transformation, from foundational figures such as Marshall McLuhan, Nam June Paik, and April Greiman to those mapping new frontiers, such as Jeanne Gang, Jony Ive, Yugo Nakamura, Neri Oxman, and Jewel Burks Solomon. Bringing together an unprecedented array of sources on digital design, this comprehensive and richly illustrated book reveals how many of the digital practices we think of as cutting-edge actually originated in the analog age and how the history of digital design is as much about our changing relationship to forms as the forms themselves.
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2023
Experience Design: A Participatory Manifesto by
An engaging introduction to the cutting-edge discipline of experience design for students and practitioners in creative fields, including architecture, product design, gaming, exhibition design, and performance; What does it mean to design experiences? Traditional design practices invite us to design things, and to use those things to solve problems. But experience is not a problem; it is life. Experience designers engage with unpredictability and the unknown, partnering with their audiences to generate possibility and relationality. Experience designers create worlds, craft narratives that leave the page and enter people's lives, and structure transformation. Broadly interdisciplinary and deeply human, experience design is a practice that at once embraces new technologies and offers a balm for our disconnected lives. In this playful, accessible, and visually engaging book, Burickson lays out ten basic principles for this emerging practice. Experience Design: A Participatory Manifesto invites the reader to stop making things and, instead, to craft the minutes and hours of human life. Rigorous and philosophical, the book guides the reader through the processes of empathic research; constructing worlds not just for fantasy fiction but in schools, communities, homes; and mastering the tools necessary to work coherently across disciplines to create new experiences. Whether you are a maker of immersive theater, an architect, a graphic designer, a community organizer, or just someone hoping to give a better gift, this book offers a vision of creating that is both new and as old as civilization.
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2023
Information Design Unbound: Key Concepts and Skills for Making Sense in a Changing World by
As everyday tasks grow more confusing, and as social and global problems grow more complex, the information designer's role in bringing clarity has reached a new level of importance. In order to have a positive impact, they must go beyond conventional approaches to uncover real needs, make insightful connections, and develop effective solutions. Information Design Unbound provides a clear, engaging introduction to the field, and prepares students to be strategic thinkers and visual problem solvers who can confidently make sense in a changing world.Sheila Pontis and Michael Babwahsingh present a holistic view of information design, synthesizing decades of research, cross-disciplinary knowledge, and emerging practices. The book opens by laying a foundation in the field, first painting the bigger picture of what it is and how it originated, before explaining the scientific and cultural dimensions of how people perceive and understand visual information. A discussion of professional practices, ethical considerations, and the expanding scale of challenges sheds light on the day-to-day work of information designers today. Detailed chapters then delve into the four areas that are integral to all types of information design work: visual thinking, research, sensemaking, and design. The final section of the book puts everything together, with detailed project walk-throughs in areas such as icon design, instructions, wayfinding, organizational strategy, and healthcare system change.Written and designed with students' needs in mind, this book brings information design fundamentals to life: exercises allow students to put lessons directly into practice, case studies demonstrate how information designers think and work, and generous illustrations clarify concepts in a visually engaging way.Information Design Unbound helps beginning designers build the mindset and skillset to navigate visual communication challenges wherever they may arise.
Call Number: E-bookPublication Date: 2023
Museum Publications Freely Available Online
- MetPublicationsSelect books and catalogs published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Read online or download as a PDF.
- Guggenheim Exhibitions PublicationsExhibition publications made available through the Internet Archive. Read online or download as a PDF.
- Getty Publications Virtual LibrarySelect Getty Publications available for individual research and study. Read online or download as a PDF.
- Getty Research PortalAn online platform providing access to digitized art history texts from contributing institutions.
- ACI Online Art BooksOpen-access, peer-reviewed e-books published by the Art Canada Institute (ACI)/ Institut de l’art canadien) highlighting twentieth century Canadian Artists.
Interlibrary Loan
Can't find an article or book on our collections? Request it through Interlibrary Loan and we'll try to borrow it from another library on your behalf. Learn more about Interlibrary Loan.
- ILLiad log-in (Opens in new window)Need a book, book chapter, or article not available at Northeastern? Current US-based Northeastern faculty, staff, and students can request materials that aren't available at the Northeastern University Library through ILLiad, our interlibrary loan software.