Project: World Without Words
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Date: 2003

Images and graphic information are doing the work that words used to do. Symbols, signs and icons are all around us. Brands and billboard ads are going wordless. Visual instructions accompany every new purchase. World Without Words is a voyage through this ‘visual shorthand’ of modern life: the material that we rarely dwell on but which forms the graphic imprint of our age.

World Without Words identifies vital currents in the graphic communication of brands, facts, public information and private conversation. But it is about more than the blur of ‘universal’ communication. The book also investigates the transformations that accepted graphic systems undergo when implemented by different cultures or individuals, and spotlights fascinating examples of wordless design from around the world. Finally, it examines how artists and activists are coming to terms with our visual information culture through their work, finding innovative new applications for the text-free graphic image.

World Without Words was conceived, researched and written by Michael Evamy, and designed by DED Associates.

"Using examples that are expected and unexpected, local and universal, corporate and subversive... Evamy is able to anchor his thoughts in case studies that bring his arguments effectively to life."
Eye magazine, autumn 2003

"Michael Evamy is obviously good at using words precisely. The text is of the highest quality. He juggles with complex issues in a clear, sharp prose. The scope of his text is also amazing; he is not afraid of engaging head-on with the kind of issues art critics try to avoid. How often do you hear globalization or the state of literacy in the 20th century discussed in a graphic design book? Evamy weaves all these issues into the book without ever losing control of his text."
Graphic magazine, spring 2003

"Evamy is undoubtedly one of the sharper design critics around and, in this case, it would definitely be worth taking the time to read the words."
Blueprint, June 2003