I contributed 20 entries to the Phaidon Design Classics project (published January 2006). This was an epic publication which came in a strangely impractical kind of frame/carrier which I believe was designed by Konstantin Grcic.
These are the texts I contributed (in order of appearance):
1878 Remington Typewriter no. 1
1915 Bell Telephone Company — Western Electric no. 20AL
1928 Le Corbusier LC2 Grand Confort
1933 Henry Dreyfuss 150 Vacuum Cleaner
1933 Raymond Loewy Pencil Sharpener
1937 Henry Dreyfuss Model 300 Telephone
1943 Sixten Sason Vacuum Cleaner
1952 Arnold Neustadter Rolodex Rotary Card File
1955 Emerson 838 Radio
1957 Mazzeri Massoni Cocktail Shaker
1959 Sony Design Centre Sony TR610 radio
1959 Eliot Noyes IBM Selectric Typewriter
1959 Sony Design Centre Sony Portable TV 80 301
1962 Zanuso & Sapper Doney 14 (Brionvega)
1964 Gugelot/Hocker Kodak Carousel Projector
1969 Ettore Sottsass Olivetti Valentine Typewriter
1971 Gillette Trac II Safey Razor Division
1981 Mario Bellini Praxis 35 Portable Electric Typewriter
1993 David Lewis B & O Sound Century CD Player
1993 James Dyson Dyson Dual Cyclone vacuum cleaner
This was a great project to work on and required quite a bit of research. In some cases (Corbusier, Sony, Loewy, Dyson etc.) there were plenty of books I could refer to, in other cases (Valentine Typewriter) I was able to interview people who actually worked on the project.
ISBN 978–0714843995
“An intriguing journey not only through the history of design, but also through a history of taste and culture.” — Design Week
“999 of the best-designed things ever … What the Oxford dictionary is to words, this is to man-made objects. … You won’t want to put it down” — The Guardian
“A guide to better living through design” - Aaron Betsky, Designer.
“The ultimate tool kit to decode the modern world. Hugely thorough, and just the right side of quirky.” - Deyan Sudjic, Curator and Critic
“…very big, very yellow and very heavy.” - Terrance Conran, Designer