Launch party Downstairs at Mother tonight cannot wait!

I remember reading the manuscript and trying out layout ideas when I first got the brief from Simon at Beautiful Books to design ‘the most beautiful book in the world’ a cross between a paperback and an art book in hardback form. Working on it Saturday and Sundays, researching and understanding surf graphics, exchanging dozens of hilarious emails with Wilma, the author, discussing the smallest detail. I remember going through foil blocking with James, the printer in Somerset, and how we both got over excited about the colours in the end bands. I have learnt that making a book is a very long process and that many many people had to work on it and love it as much as I did for it to finally make the shelves at Foyles.

The dust jacket has blue surfboards that divide the sections and make up the spine. The cover was Wilma’s painting and her own lettering so I felt the design had to match the mood:

One of my favourite bits is the end paper: Wilma uses flowers in her work all the time so a flower pattern made out of surfboards seemed fitting:

Cover and interior design by Mina Bach! That’s me! Also Wilma was a sweetheart and included me in the Thank you page, I couldn’t believe it when she sent the copy, my mum is very proud:

To make the artwork and text link to each other and float nicely every chapter (all 54 of them!) has a B&W icon hand drawn by Wilma that relates to the story. I also thought to make every page a bit more playful and because the story has it’s ups and downs the page numbers have a wave that goes up and down when you flip them like a flip-book:

I had mentioned the part separators a while back, well, here they are with some minor changes:

Spread with one of my favourite paintings:

I love a hula girl:

More endpaper and back flap featuring Wilma’s portrait in glorious colour:

Detail of the back cover with some of the chapter icons and layout inspired by 60s surf magazines:

This book will always mean so much to me and it helps that it is a very good story too, can’t recommend it enough. I read the 352 pages in two days and I’m not the fastest reader.

Available from Foyles, Amazon or any good book seller!

This is my entry to AND Publishing‘s The Piracy Project: Signed A.C. A visualisation on the ‘false document’ literary device using a well known classic (The Outsider by Albert Camus – with one of the most famous first lines in Literature) as a vehicle touching on the subject of authorship and unique vs. multiples.

The first section of the book, in yellow, introduces the fiction:

Found near Charing Cross Road and Manette Street in London Soho, 7.38pm on May 31st 2011.Please find attached a facsimile of the document as true to the original as possible. Also included in the following section a transcription of the text to ensure readability.
Since finding it I confess I have grown obsessed with the story, seemingly a personal diary. I have tried to date it based on the materials and the handwriting, the names and the locations. I’m desperate to know more about the person this belongs to. Who wrote it, When and Why. Please read it carefully, pay attention to the way the surroundings and the feelings are described, the trial and the void.
Any information you can gather from reading will indeed be very valuable. A digital version of the manuscript can be supplied, find my contact details below. Pass this on so it can reach as many people as possible.
The only lead I have is that it is signed A. C.

A facsimile of the ‘found’ manuscript follows, all pages are handwritten representing the original one-off:

Last, a transcription of the manuscript, typeset and laid out as a mass produced paperback:

Thanks to Andrea, Eva and Lynn of AND Publishing!

It all started with my vintage magazine collection and my tumblr. The 1950s are my favourite decade but to me literally:

‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times [...]

we had everything before us, we had nothing before us’

The recurring theme of the man trap and all the different ways to build one:

I have a lot of material so I will use the money I make from this edition (risograph is a very expensive process and so is my choice of paper so literally making no profit) to print more issues maybe with a theme (advice for wives, intimate hygiene, kitchenalia,…). So buy one if you can and help fund it!

My first ‘beautiful book’ was John Waters memoir ‘Role Models’ that I bought when he came to London for a talk a few months ago. I fell in love with Eric Hanson‘s pencil drawn cover and remember holding the book as Mr Waters was reading and getting it signed after (TO MINA in capital letters) and how my heart was racing when he said I had hair like Mink Stole.

Some books are like that, they leave a special impression and the more you carry them around with you the more it feels like you’re keeping each other’s company.  It’s always hard letting go of these special books so when I finished reading I wanted to know who published it and, yes, it was Beautiful Books. I loved the name. What a statement! How very brave. Instantly reminded me of Emil Ruder’s article and his quote ‘Books should be beautiful and cheap‘ a manifesto of sorts that opened my eyes to a way of understanding book design and publishing. So I looked up their website, followed them on twitter and subscribed to their blog.

Cover by Eric Hanson

A few weeks ago at uni in PPD class we were asked to consider where we would like to work in the future and were encouraged to start thinking about work placements and internships. Obviously I thought of Beautiful Books and I sent them an email similar to what you’ve just read offering a pair of hands and some brains to help in their studio. They were so nice and so I went to their HQ in Soho for a chat last week with a handmade japanese bound booklet with my most recent work and CV that I made for them in tow.

Some pages from the booklet:

It’s my first day tomorrow and I’m very very excited, doubt I’ll get much sleep tonight. My tasks will include help design their new fall catalogue and after that maybe book covers, book jackets… absolute dream!

PS. Another piece of good news: Thanks to all your votes and support I ended up 3rd on the Norwegian Wood Film Poster Competition which means my poster will be on display at the Curzon cinemas in London and in for a chance to be selected by a panel of judges to be the winner!. I will pop in this weekend to take a peek and show you, I’m over the moon, couldn’t be happier. Thank you all!

The story is set in 1930s/40s so I felt the illustrations had to reflect that and be as period accurate as possible.

The name of the author and title only had to go on the spine of the book which worked nicely for my idea. This is a rough sketch with the blue of the Mediterranean sea the protagonist loves so much and the lines of the leather as the waves:

Part One, Chapter I ‘Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday; I can’t be sure. The telegram from the Home says: ‘YOUR MOTHER PASSED AWAY. FUNERAL TOMORROW. DEEP SYMPATHY.’ Which leaves the matter doubtful; it could have been yesterday.’

Inside cover, clippings and bits of paper including a telegram and a cinema ticket which will be important in the story later on.

Part One, Chapter I Pag 15 ‘A bit later, for want of anything better to do, I picked up an old newspaper that was lying on the floor and read it. There was an advertisement of Kruschen Salts and I cut it out and pasted in into an album where I keep things that amuse me in the papers.’

Researching Kruschen Salts ads from the time, I came across ‘The Smile’ campaign featuring a smiley bearded man and a very long text. I thought the idea of an open display of emotion such as an honest smile would have interested and intrigued Meursault enough to keep it, the way people collect exotic butterflies so I went with that idea for my illustration.

Part Two Chapter II ‘One day, when inspecting my straw mattress, I found a bit of newspaper stuck to its underside. The paper was yellow with age, almost transparent, but I could still make out the letter print. It was the story of a crime.

The first part was missing, but I gathered that its scene was some village in Czechoslovakia. One of the villagers had left his home to try his luck abroad. After twenty-five years, having made a fortune, he returned to his country with his wife and child. Meanwhile his mother and sister had been running a small hotel in the village where he was born. He decided to give them a surprise and, leaving his wife and child in another inn, he went to stay at his mother’s place, booking a room under an assumed name. His mother and sister completely failed to recognize him. At dinner that evening he showed them a large sum of money he had on him, and in the course of the night they slaughtered him with a hammer. After taking the money they flung the body into the river. Next morning his wife came and, without thinking, betrayed the guest’s identity. His mother hanged herself. His sister threw herself into a well. I must have read that story thousands of times. In one way it sounded most unlikely; in another, it was plausible enough. Anyhow, to my mind, the man was asking for trouble; one shouldn’t play fool tricks of that sort.’

Over 4,000 people (professionals and students) have entered the competition, the winning entry will form part of a Folio Society commission for a book which will be published in August 2011, for which the winner will receive £4,000. Five runners up will each receive a cash prize of £500.

I really enjoyed the whole process and will definitely develop this idea into a book with more illustrations and maybe hand writting for the whole text instead of type setting. Quentin Blake is one of the judges, I used to love his illustrations as a child, just the thought of him seeing my work is very very exciting!.

Also a few weeks ago I entered the V&A 2011 Student Ilustrator Award with my book illustration project ‘Tattoo’ here’s my entry.

Wish me luck!

I was showing it to my illustrator friend earlier today and she fell in love too, it’s definitely a book to keep close at hand and dip into for inspiration.

C for a Crow

L for a Long Leaf, a Leaf, a Little Leaf and a Lemon

O for an Owl and an Onion and an Orange

And my absolute favourite:

W for a Watermelon on a Wagon with a Wooden Wheel