Written by Charlene Prempeh

Previously marginalized, overlooked, or even erased from history, Black designers are finally given their due in this first book to celebrate a century of ground-breaking 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? 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, full of photographs and illustrations, aims to correct that oversight, bringing a century of Black designers and their work into focus.

Organized into three sections focusing on Fashion, Architecture and Graphic Design, Prempeh uses the pioneering work of key figures from the 20th and 21st century to explore important aspects of how Black design has been perceived within culture and society.

From the necessity of the side-hustle, to interrogating the value placed on Black design, from reclaiming traditions, to exploring how design can be a form of protest, this book brings to the fore the stories of figures such as Ann Lowe, Dapper Dan, Norma Sklarek, Francis Kéré, Emory Douglas and Liz Montague to unpick the complexities of being a Black designer.

Product Details:

Book Dimensions: 1.0" H x 9.0" L x 7" W

ISBN: ISBN 10: 3791388479  ISBN 13: 9783791388472

Binding: Hardcover

Pages: 200

Published: Feb. 6, 2024 by Prestel

About the Author:

CHARLENE PREMPEH is the founder of A Vibe Called Tech, a Black-owned creative agency that is dedicated to approaching creativity through an intersectional lens. Charlene is also a Financial Times HTSI columnist and contributing editor who writes about design, travel, and culture.

After studying PPE at Oxford University, she began a career in marketing and worked at some of the UK’s most prominent media platforms and art institutions including the BBC, The Guardian, and Frieze. More recently, she launched A Vibe Called Tech to encourage a culturally diverse lens in design, technology, arts, and culture by spearheading partnerships, events, research, and workshops across London and through her journalism and consultancy work.

Since its establishment in 2018, A Vibe Called Tech has worked with brands including, Stine Goya, Faber, Frieze and institutions like Whitechapel Gallery, White Cube, and V&A East to deliver ambitious creative output that nourishes communities. In 2022, the agency launched Turned A, a cultural merchandising project that seeks to amplify key messages of the creative agency’s projects. Its Art Consultancy arm was established to help clients connect seamlessly with artists. Charlene currently consults for the Royal Academy of Arts, is a Non-Executive Director on the Tate Enterprise board, a trustee for Contemporary Arts Society and Committee Chair for Frieze 91.

Check out this interview with Prempeh for more behind the scenes of the book: In 'Now You See Me,' Charlene Prempeh Uncovers a Century of True Stories about Black Creatives – PRINT Magazine