Wim Crouwel is the Dutch typographer and designer largely to blame for my love of grid-based posters and the International Style in general. See more from his incredible body of work »

Josef Müller-Brockmann, 1914 – 1996  |  The Swiss maestro of poster design. More on Flickr »

Recently received a reissued edition of John Coltrane’s 1957 masterpiece Blue Train and was reminded of just how incredible Blue Note album covers tend to be.

The cream of the crop has got to be the work done by Reid Miles through the fifties and early sixties. During his eleven year tenure, he created some of the most iconic and enduring images of jazz to date. His distinct approach of combining bold color, funky lettering, and clean typography with half-toned images by photographer and Blue Note co-founder Francis Wolff left an indelible mark on mid-century graphic design. Not to mention everything that’s come since.

Before I knew anything about graphic design or music, I knew these had some serious mojo.

For all the bad it did the Chinese people, the Cultural Revolution produced some amazing art and graphic design. If you need proof, just consider this striking two-color print of an oddly European-looking fellow trying to decide between his pick axe and his rifle. Did he go with the Mandarin salad or the Peking duck? Hard to say, but this photoset of clip art from the Cultural Revolution is well worth a look.