LESS IS MORE (DIFFICULT): 20 YEARS OF DESIGN AT BLUE DOT

Contributions by Maurice Blanks, John Christakos and Charlie Lazor; Text by Andrew Blauvelt Rizzoli

Because the definition of ‘American’ design is often hotly debated, this exciting new volume is especially important. Blu Dot, an American pioneer of ‘ democratic design’ for 20 years, and winner of the 2018 National Design Award for Product Design from the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, offers us key insights into understanding the state of the contemporary American design landscape.

The book’s 360 pages are organised into seven sections, and the volume’s design is as charming as the brand’s furnishings, and authentically executed and presented in the same warm, minimalist style. Amongst its colour photography, sketches, notes and other archival materials, the brilliantly framed text is literally a constant conversation between the founders and other key contributors.

But the most telling part of the book is the exceptional introduction written by Andrew Blauvelt, Director of the legendary Cranbrook Art Museum. In it he aptly asserts: “Blu Dot speaks in a voice that is neither faceless nor breathless. Quick-witted, with a penchant for puns, it flirts with kitsch and sometimes the risqué, but never seems vulgar or pandering. It has a soft spot for the quirkiness of everyday life, an urbane disposition without the cynicism.” This exceptional volume is a must-read for anyone interested in the formation of 21st-century design culture in America.