08/18/2026
When images become infinite, curation becomes invaluable.
Over the years, we’ve examined an estimated 100 million images and objects spanning the history of modern print design and illustration. What we learned from them helped shape a tightly edited collection of approximately 100,000 images, which is roughly one in a thousand. The collection was never built by trying to have the most images; it was built by rejecting almost everything. Some of what remained was carefully restored, transformed, or reinvented, while thousands more images were created by the many talented artists and designers who have worked with us over the decades.
Today there is an almost unlimited quantity of imagery available online, which makes me think the old idea that the biggest collection wins may have turned upside down. Maybe what becomes more useful now is a smaller, tightly edited collection with a recognizable point of view, clear provenance, and an understanding of why every image belongs there. CSA Images is a human-created, wholly owned, and exclusively represented collection shaped by a consistent creative philosophy, where nothing is crowdsourced or anonymously uploaded. The new site makes the collection much easier to search, explore, and license, whether you need a single image for a design project or want to talk with us about something much larger involving products, publishing, technology, or licensing.
We’re making five of our original self-published CSA books available free for a limited time, or until we run out. The first CSA Archive book was published in 1995, back when a printed book was one of the only ways we had to showcase a collection of images. These are original first editions from our archive, still in like-new condition. They’re part of our history and, I think, a small part of design history too (shipping and handling is extra).
For everyone who has licensed an image, bought our books, worked with us, followed our design work, or simply encouraged this lifelong pursuit of wonderfully strange things, thank you. And if you haven’t looked at CSA Images in a while, take another look. The world has changed. The reason for our collection hasn't.
