Results tagged “publishing” from :: ( CRIT ) :: DESIGN BLOG ::
With no class scheduled on Wednesday night last week, I utilized this rare occasion to attend AIGA/NY's Knopf: Then and Now. Leading the audience of the Tisham Auditorium through a book jacket time warp of sorts was Knopf's revered team of Carol Devine Carson, Barbara de Wilde, Archie Ferguson and Chip Kidd. In the late 1980's, this theatrical quartet of designers transformed the art of the American book jacket. Reflecting on their time at Knopf, they shed light on their personal experiences in the publishing industry.
Confessing to reading each manuscript that comes across her desk, Carol Devine Carson discussed the task of engaging others in a conversation through design. Carson went onto reveal Knopf's concern over loosing their creative magic with the introduction of the computer.
In one of the evening's adoring moments, Knopf's team reminisced over their adventures at an Adobe Illustrator workshop. Recalling their teacher's enthusiasm for bezier curves, Chip Kidd remarked, "I was like biatch, I don't know what you're talking about!"
On the topic of using design tools as cover art, Kidd and Barbara de Wilde confessed to choosing those objects for their visual allure. An attempt for Chip described as getting customers to look at the book, pick up the book and ultimately purchase the book. Ardently quizzing himself, "Do I want to read it?!"
Debating over book jackets and their relation to content, de Wilde shared her habit of collecting swipe (photographic inspiration) and the effect it had on book covers. Previously, photography was solely used on nonfiction covers, while artwork and illustrations were employed for fiction.
Arriving to Knopf during a golden age for women in jacket design, Barbara touched on her struggle creating designs to appear gender-less. Publicly requesting an opportunity to work with blood and gore.
After looking at her back catalogue, de Wilde expressed personal frustration from watching her work become cleaner and simpler. While yearning for the expressionism of her initial covers. However, observing in current bookstores, the clearer covers sing out on the shelves.
During one of the most enlightening moments of the Now portion, Chip pointed to the cover of Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck. Revealing that this is what a bestseller looks like; smart, beautifully designed, with great proportions, declaring, "... There is still an understanding for that!"
Knopf's speakers wrapped up the night with a glimpse of upcoming releases. But not before some insightful theories on the ever apparent e-book and Kindle, and their so-called ramifications on the publishing industry. For a trade reputedly on its way out, the evening remained encouraging and stimulating, but look who was talking.
