Example design dissertation topic 2:

Twentieth-century graphic design: A tribute to William Addison Dwiggins.

Celebrating the life and career of William Addison Dwiggins, this dissertation applauds the man who first coined the phrase ‘graphic design’ in his 1922 article, ‘New kind of printing calls for new design’. Though a founding father of the movement, his legacy to modern day graphic designers is often overlooked. Seeking, therefore, to address this gap in existing literature, this study looks not only at his work in typography (and in so doing evaluates the ongoing importance of his seminal work Layout in advertising) but also reviews his work as an illustrator.

Suggested initial topic reading:

• Dwiggins, W.A. (1948). Layout in advertising (1948 edn). London: Harper.
• Dwiggins, W.A. (1999). ‘New kind of printing calls for new design’. In Bierut, M., Helfand, J. and Heller, (Eds.). Looking closer 3: Classic writings on graphic design. New York: Allworth Press.
• Tracy, W. (2003). Letters of credit: A view of type design. Boston, MA: D.R. Godine.

  MacGrew, M. (1993). American metal typefaces of the twentieth century. New Castle, DE: Oak Knoll Books.