The Designer's Dictionary of Color

By Sean Adams and Jessica Helfand

A guide to the cultural, historical, and social meanings of twenty-seven colors, plus examples of successful usage of each as well as options for palette variations.

The Designer’s Dictionary of Color provides an in-depth look at twenty-seven colors key to art and graphic design. Organized by spectrum, in color-by-color sections for easy navigation, this book documents each hue with charts showing color range and palette variations. Chapters detail each color’s creative history and cultural associations, with examples of color use that extend from the artistic to the utilitarian—whether the turquoise on a Reid Miles album cover or the avocado paint job on a 1970s Dodge station wagon. A practical and inspirational resource for designers and students alike, The Designer’s Dictionary of Color opens up the world of color for all those who seek to harness its incredible power.

• Language: English
• Publisher: ABRAMS
• Release date: Apr 11, 2017
• ISBN: 9781683350026

Sean Adams

Sean Adams, chair of graphic design at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California, is an AIGA Medal winner and author of The Designer's Dictionary of Color and The Designer's Dictionary of Type. His clients include Adobe, Gap, Nickelodeon, and Sundance.

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Reviews for The Designer's Dictionary of Color

[Lucinda Mayo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So glad to have discovered this invaluable resource: will be gleefully using it in my quiltmaking designs from now on.

[forex · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thank you for incredible journey in colors, and god bliss

[Diana V · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book is great. My issue is with the Scribd display. The text is really small and the function to increase the text doesn't work so the readability is low.