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Visual Literacy: A Conceptual Approach to Graphic Problem Solving- by Judith Wilde, Richard Wilde
A ground-level course in basic design principals like rhythm, pattern, focal point, and contrast presented as assignments from a design class complete with creative thinking exercises and real solutions from the authors’ students. Solid advice and examples to help you walk before you can run. These principals are so fundamental, yet are so easily overlooked daily.
The Elements of Color- by Johannes Itten
This is in many ways a more simplified version of Itten’s exhaustive The Art of Color. If you plan to work with color at all, you owe it to yourself to know some decent color principles like why certain color combinations work better than others, theories on color contrasts and processes to obtain color combinations that evoke particular moods. Also check out: Color Index by Jim Krause, and Leslie Cabarga’s The Designer’s Guide to Color Combinations and The Designer’s Guide to Global Color Combinations. While these are useful, they can also become crutches. Use them as starting points to color ideas or as reference.
Articles
A History of Graphic Design