The Best Design Books for Everyone on Your Gift List

There are few things more satisfying than leafing through a beautifully designed and thoughtful book about a subject that is dear to your heart, as design is to mine. The books on this list are a great resource for anyone interested in design, architecture, color, or the way all three inform the way we look at the world around us. 

For poster lovers, logo nerds and type-heads

The history of graphic design stretches all the way back to the 15th century during the advancement of the moveable-type printing press, according to Graphic Classics, a varied and rich archive of exceptional images throughout history. Picked by graphic designers, design historians and critics, the examples in the book are considered to be the finest in the field, dating from 1377 to 2023. The book is also a reassessment of the 2012 edition; the 2024 update promises to be an "amplified selection of first-class graphic design" that includes "different voices, approaches, and disciplines" which were previously left out of the discourse.

I would give Graphic Classics to any middle schooler or teenager interested in art. It’s a visually nutritious alternative to one’s Instagram feed. I would also give it to other designers regardless of trade, and to my mother who still doesn’t know what it is that I do. 

For iconoclast cabin aficionados

The houses in Prefab and Modular are so original and their forms so interesting it makes you want to pick up paper and pencil to draw them. This title by Gestalten (my favorite publisher of creative and visual books, based in Berlin-Kreuzberg) feels quintessentially Dwell in spirit—full of superbly creative homes, mostly small, and wildly varied in style.

I would give Prefab and Modular to any Dwell reader and subscriber. I would also give it to anyone who dreams of owning a unique home in nature or even a unique ADU. And I would give it to my scientist dad, who would enjoy seeing some very different types of homes (and ways of living) from around the world.

For material people

Great Women Sculptors is a fantastic resource for anyone interested in materiality and space, be it objects, rooms, art, or otherwise. The editors of the book note that while sculpture resists definition, it "initiates encounters in space." Great Women Sculptors is both a beautiful art compilation book, and a showpiece for the other half of the world that also makes great art. This book is a great gift for art lovers, tinkerers, adventurous travelers, and advocates for inclusion.

For AI enthusiasts, Surrealists, escapists, and architectural dreamers

Living in a Dream features drawings of stunning staircases, surprisingly appealing stone, and cave-like homes, and it pushes color and scale to extreme dimensions. The projects were created by a mix of trained architects, designers, artists, and interior enthusiasts and the editors call the work in the book an "expression of the dreamscape movement, a manifestation of our collective unconscious, and our wildest architectural desires."

I would give Living in a Dream to filmmakers, artists, teachers, and storytellers of any medium and of any age (and of most genres). And I think my cousin who is into game environment design would especially appreciate this book— it’s totally "SSS tier" as the gamers say. 

For the architecture professional (or the ultimate coffee table queen) 

I first learned about Shigeru Ban while reading about the paper tube emergency shelters he designed in Japan, Turkey, and India. Shigeru Ban. Complete Works 1985-Today is the latest in Taschen’s oversize monograph series and includes Ban’s paper, bamboo, lumber, and steel homes, churches, schools, and museums. The volume of work in Taschen’s compilation is borderline overwhelming—yet each project warrants every inch of the page. 

Ban’s imaginative aesthetic and his sustainable, functional materials are so impressive that this compilation will appeal to anyone interested in sustainability and good design. The size of this book (a hefty 13.4 by 18.5 inches), makes for a nice statement piece and a fun experience. While the price tag is up there, I would give this to a valued friend or colleague who likes architecture or design education—or anyone with a predilection for a well-styled coffee table, be it in their home or a stylish office waiting room or lobby.

For the theorists and art teachers (they deserve it!)

The Book of Colour Concepts is a beautiful and deeply comprehensive study of color theory—846 pages in English, French, German, and Spanish. I first learned about this book when a video review by artist and color theory educator Peter Donahue, who goes by the moniker Color Nerd, made its way into my Reels. Full of scholarly depth and an abundance of opulent color wheels, polychrome charts, and foldouts, I was immediately enamored with this resource. I imagine anyone interested in color and how we look at the world would feel similarly. 

Selfishly, this is the book I would most want to give to myself. I would also give it to fellow designers, artists, educators, and book collectors.

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Looking for something else? Check out the rest of our holiday gift guides here.