1. A written or printed work consisting of pages glued or sewn together along one side and bound in
covers.
2. A bound set of sheets.
Although the definitions above capture the most obvious notions of what a book is to most, they no longer do justice to what a book is in the present. With rapid technological advancement since the beginning of the digital age in 1970's, the term now can be applied to a vast multitude of ideologies concerned with the production of fictional or non-fictional visual layouts. No longer is the word 'book' reserved for physical pages that are held together as one, but can be used to describe any of the following:
- Physical printed publications.
- Digital publications or e-books.
- Audio-books that are simply to be listened to.
Below I will explore three different physical books, looking at their stock, binding, layout and typography.
1. Viction:ary / Palette 03: Gold and Silver New Metallic Graphics / 2013
Viction:ary's Palette 03 from their palette series focuses on New Metallic Graphics, designs using gold and silver specifically. The purpose of the book is to showcase and celebrate designers using metallics to produce their work and the processes they used to achieve it.
The paperback cover is made from a heavy-weight gold-coated stock, with all typographic information sans-serif and centrally de-bossed into the cover - no typographic information has been printed. This creates the illusion that the book, when closed, is a block of engraved pure gold which appropriately reflects and gives implication to the content from immediate visual engagement with the book. The cover typeface is all-caps bold and rounded, enhancing the engraved aesthetic.
Content inside the book is printed on a matt, crisp white paper stock, at around 120gsm in weight maintaining the quality aesthetic inside. The book is image/photography driven as to ensure the focus remains with the design work. Typographic information inside is limited to a small rationale of each featured design project, further establishing its visually-driven aesthetic. Heading type within the book is the same as that on the cover in style, though is black and set as standard with capitals for the start of name and sentences and lower case for all else. The body type is also black, set at around a 10pt size, however is different is style. This type is an extremely subtle stencil typeface, very light in weight/stroke and flush left.
All compositions within the book are balanced, yet varying in margin size and bleed. Some pages are full bleed, whilst others feature clear margins - though this style is cohesive throughout the publication. There is consistent use of spacing in between images which helps to provide a structured and ordered visual language which in turn creates a sophisticated and high-quality feel for the publication relevant to the content.
The book is Perfect Bound - a form of binding most typically used in the types of books people buy and read. Pages are folded into sections, known as signatures in the industry, and glued with a heavier printed wrap-around cover into the spine using a strong adhesive. This adds to the high-class finish of the book further amplifying content/concept relevancy.
2. Haynes / Volkswagen Polo Owners Workshop Manual / 2010
Haynes' Volkswagen Polo Owners Workshop Manual provides comprehensive information on the car and how to look after it, use its functions and how to tell when/if there is something wrong. The manual focuses specifically on the 2002 to May 2005 petrol and diesel models.
The hard-back cover, which is coated with a flat gloss, communicates information via a limited colour palette pf black, white, grey and accents of yellow. A tiny bit of red is apparent on the Haynes logo, which has evidently informed the covers selected colours palette. The majority of typographic information is set on black ground, with variations of the same sans-serif typeface used to create a visual hierarchy. Ordering of information is achieved via type style and size, with the cover featuring elements of all caps, standard type, bold type, all lower-case and bold italic type. Some of the type is also set in yellow as an accent colour to draw attention and provide emphasis of the books content. The cover also features a photograph of a car, which overhangs a solid grey square creating depth via solid line interruption, form and shadow.
Content inside the book is printed on extremely thin newsprint, perhaps under 90gsm. Visual information is laid out using a consistent visual language of three columns, even spacing, set margins and the use of type styling to identify and differentiate headings from body type. This visual language is rarely deviated from. Akin to the cover, type inside the book is sans-serif and it set at a very small size as to maximise space and allow for all the content to be delivered in a sensible amount of pages - another reasoning for the thin paper (larger type and thicker paper would ultimately produce a much larger book). An informative book, the content is communicated free from any concept or idea other than to clearly deliver the content free from distraction or interruption. Space is optimised throughout with most pages full of information and photographs/illustrations that aid the understanding of instruction. All photographic/illustrative information is set in black and white, enhancing cohesion whilst enhancing the books evident, solely functional motives.
Compositions are balanced, cohesive, consistent and functional. The pages have not been designed considering style or design trend, but as purely objective deliverance of information.
As the book is a hard-back, this means it is bound with a rigid protective cover that has a flexible, sewn spine which allows the book to lie flat on a surface when opened. The binding method used for this book is a perfect-bind, using signatures that are glued using a strong adhesive. All of this makes for a more robust publication less prone to exterior damage.
3. LCA / Nest Magazine / Issue #7
Leeds College of Art's Nest is a student magazine showcasing the work and design of LCA students as well as featuring interaction with industry practitioners. All content in the issue is created by the talent of students who attend here, with this particular issue focusing on the last two letters of the magazine name - S and T - as the inspiration for content.
A visually motivated publication, the NEST cover features a full bleed photographic spread, covered by a matt wrap around covering half the width of the publication. This wrap around is white featuring the NEST serif typographic logo, an arrangement of the word's letters skewed to fit together effectively, which has been silver-foiled creating an embellishment of interest and process. Additional information is featured centrally at the bottom of the wrap around in a black, sans-serif type at around 10pt size. The wrap around stock is a white, subtle textured paper - A5 folded in half in scale.
Though content inside the magazine is varied and visually dominated there are consistencies
that enable readers to more easily identify and navigate the publication. Two dominant typefaces are featured within the magazine, both sans-serif, however one a heavier weight than the other with a more geometric foundation. These two typefaces are used to order information through style distinction and provide structure and order to the content. Consistent margins and use of two columns of type featured on pages also provide aesthetic clarity. The stock used from the content of the magazine is smooth, white paper with a matt finish.
Despite the plethora of imagery featured in the magazine, evidence of a conscious effort to supply each page layout with optimum balance is clear to be seen throughout.
The magazine is bound using staples as the utility for the saddle-stitch method, with two staples holding together the pages securely at the fold. This is a typical choice for such a publication that is made in large quantity due to the ease and cost of this binding method.
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