Stylish, small, and perfect for collecting, Compact Design Portfolio titles are penned by accomplished writers with real knowledge of and fresh enthusiasm for their subjects. Containing scores of illustrations for ongoing reference, this series perfectly encapsulates the life, work, and influence of the great designers of our time. In this edition the work of George Nelson is surveyed.

In 1946, Nelson became director of design at Herman Miller, a position he held until 1972. While there, Nelson recruited other seminal modern designers including Charles Eames and Isamu Noguchi. He also developed his own designs, including the Marshmallow sofa, the Nelson platform bench and the first L-shaped desk, a precursor to the present-day workstation. He also created a series of boldly graphic wall clocks, a series of bubble lamps made of self-webbing plastic and developed forward looking, occasionally futuristic concepts such as the "hidden city" of underground buildings designed to create a "more humane environment."

Nelson felt that designers must be "aware of the consequences of their actions on people and society and thus cultivate a broad base of knowledge and understanding." Nelson himself certainly followed this principle. He was an early environmentalist, one of the first designers to take an interest in new communications technology and a powerful writer and teacher. Perhaps influenced by his friend, Buckminster Fuller, Nelson's ultimate goal as a designer was "to do much more with much less."