Journal 4

In general, the quality of book design and production declined in the nineteenth century. One notable exception is the books published by William Pickering. His book of Oliver Byrne’s The Elements of Euclid, 1847, is significant in book design. He printed in bright primary colors using wood blocks. In these geometry lessons, color was used to identify lines, shapes, and forms.

While looking at the design’s in Pickering’s book, they immediately reminded me of the work of the artist Piet Mondrian. Mondrian was a Dutch artist who moved to New York in 1940. His late works use bright colors and a grid-like patterns that imitate the fast pace of city streets in New York. Below is Mondrian’s painting Composition II in Red, Blue, and Yellow. 

Sources: Wikipedia, pietmondrian.com