The story and teachings of one of the world's most creative design schools, as told by its teachers, alumni, and student projects - the ideal book for educators and students alike, posing the question 'How should design be taught today?' Swiss university ECAL is widely considered to be among the leading art and design institutions of the past two decades. Here, for the first time, ECAL's teaching methods are revealed to a wider readership. The book poses the question 'How should design be taught today?' to select designers, critics, and writers, and the answers highlight the school's unique approach to design pedagogy: encouraging individual and personal styles, and rigorously pushing them to develop into their most coherent forms. This is the only book to explain ECAL's innovative teaching methods, which encourage students to be business minded as well as creative.

An authoritative chronicle of the design history of the skateboard, from its humble beginnings in the 1950s to the present day From its starting point as a simple wooden plank to the high-tech boards of today, the skateboard has undergone a dramatic evolution. Skateboard explores its design, from the materials used to build it, to the shapes and sizes that have been innovative and popular over the years. Organized chronologically, Skateboard comprises important designs, documenting the technical evolution of the skateboard, as well as the influence that these objects had on the performance and culture of the sport. Packed with information and insights about the people and events that have shaped skateboarding, Skateboard features pro models of iconic skaters such as Laura Thornhill, Ray ‘Bones’ Rodriguez, Tony Hawk, Natas Kaupas, and Mike Vallely. With 300 photographs and illustrations – including many historic skateboard decks and equipment – this volume offers a comprehensive overview of the sport’s key design milestones and developments.

An in-depth study of the work of German-born industrial designer Richard Sapper, most famous for designs such as the Tizio lamp and the Brionvega radio. Richard Sapper (1932-2015) a German-born designer who was based in Milan most of his working career, is considered one of the most important designers of his generation. Within his lifetime, he received numerous international design accolades, including ten prestigious Compasso d'Oro awards. Sapper developed and designed a wide variety of products, ranging from ships and cars, to computers and electronics as well as furniture and kitchen appliances. His clients included Alessi, Artemide, B&B Italia, Brionvega, FIAT, Heuer, Kartell, Knoll, IBM, Lenovo, Lorenz Milano, Magis, Molteni, Pirelli and many others. This investigation of Sapper's work, based on over forty hours of interviews with the designer Jonathan Olivares, studies his objects, the circumstances that shaped them and the resulting ideals that emerge. The inter-generational conversation explores themes that reoccur throughout Sapper's oeuvre, and which have a particular importance for a younger generation of designers and those with a desire to understand Sapper's work from a fresh perspective. An illustrated timeline, packed with images from Sapper's personal archives, reveals the incredible variety and technical brilliance of his work. Richard Sapper died in Milan on 31 December 2015. Designed by SM Associati, the agency of Marco Velardi from Apartamento magazine, the book opens with an image essay featuring candid commissioned photography by Ramak Fazel.