shelved in: Technical Library - at: N151

When it came time to teach some first year students at NYIT about the Golden Section and other means of proportion, I tracked down this book to help refresh my memory on the ways of constructing various rectangle (Golden and otherwise) and to copy some diagrams that would be of use for my students. The book excels in these areas, since it's written very clearly, the diagrams are even clearer (black and white and red, as on the cover), and the author's various analyses of buildings, furniture, paintings and other creations benefit from vellum pages that overlay the respective proportioning devices. The clarity and beautiful design combine to make the book a great introduction for students but also a great reminder of the importance of geometry and proportion in design, even in our age of computers. ( )

Technical Library - shelved at: N151

At last, a mathematical explanation of how art works presented in a manner we can all understand. Kimberly Elam takes the reader on a geometrical journey, lending insight and coherence to the design process by exploring the visual relationships that have foundations in mathematics as well as the essential qualities of life. Geometry of Design takes a close look at a broad range of twentieth-century examples of design, architecture, and illustration (from the Barcelona chair to the paintings of Georges Seurat, from the Braun hand blender to the Conico kettle), revealing underlying geometric structures in their compositions. Explanations and techniques of visual analysis make the inherent mathematical relationships evident and a must-have for anyone involved in art, design, or architecture graphic arts. The book focuses not only on the classic systems of proportioning, such as the golden section and root rectangles, but also on less well known proportioning systems such as the Fibonacci Series. Through detailed diagrams these geometric systems are brought to life giving an effective insight into the design process.