Can anyone recommend an acccessible book that outlines the origins, features etc. of major design movements, either of the 20th century or further back. The books I have found either tend to give examples of specific pieces of work ,or are not very accessible (to me at least).
You might like to take a look at '20th Century Design' a series of 6 books published by the Heinemann Library. Each volume deals with two decades of the century ( I can let you have more details if required) also, 'The look of the century: Design icons of the 20th Century' by Michael Tambini is very accessible, with plenty of illustrations. Hope this helps!