Now You See Me

Previously marginalized, overlooked, or even erased from history, Black designers are finally given their due in this first book to celebrate a century of groundbreaking work by Black graphic artists, architects and fashion designers whose work has helped define key cultural moments and movements.You've seen their work-but have you seen them? From advertising to architecture, cartooning to fashion design, Black designers have been working in every major industry but, for the past decades, have not been given the spotlight anywhere near to the extent of their white counterparts. This vibrant and wide-ranging book more than corrects that oversight, bringing a century of Black designers and their work fully into focus. The book is organized into three sections by discipline, focusing on Fashion, Architecture and Graphic Design. Each section explores the key figures from the 20th century whose pioneering work gradually entered the mainstream, before revealing how, today, the Black design community is finally becoming visible. Each section features interviews that shed light on its historic period, as well as a deeper dive into several designers whose work and life represents their era. Filled with photographs and illustrations throughout this is a compelling and entertaining visual essay that reports from the intersection of race and the arts while raising important questions about the nature and sustainability of Black design in western culture.