The long and beautiful story of Native American graphic design
Brian Johnson, a member of the Monacan Indian Nation, is painting the field of graphic design red, with his new book, Designed to Be Red: Native & Indigenous Graphic Works , published on September 15 by DelMonico Books. The book contributes to the larger project of decolonizing design. Showing more than 200 years of Native American graphic works from makers across 144 distinct nations, tribes,…
Brian Johnson, a member of the Monacan Indian Nation, has published a book that brings Native and Indigenous graphic works to the forefront of graphic design. Titled Designed to Be Red: Native & Indigenous Graphic Works, the book is published by DelMonico Books and was released on September 15. The book showcases over 200 years of Native American graphic works created by makers from 144 distinct nations, tribes, bands, and Indigenous cultural and language groups.
Johnson's project, which took three years to complete, aims to dismantle the myth of design as something that originated solely in Europe during the 1800s. The book's title is a play on words, using the color red, which is often used as a weapon against Native Americans, to represent the design elements that have been attributed to Native peoples.
Johnson's background as a Native American designer, curator, and partner at the design studio Polymode has earned him the trust of Native and Indigenous makers and guiding Aunties who contributed to the book.
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