Ode: Challenging
Latest from Vertical:
Cover design by Chip Kidd. He’d just started work with them when I met him many moons back, and was genuinely excited about it — glad to see the collaboration continues to flourish.
And an interesting cover it is. Two different fonts, so close to one another, yet different. Spacing that doesn’t, at first glance, have alignment. A sliding slipjacket for the title. Like a good deal of Chip’s stuff, it pushes the boundaries — and begs examination.
The Toon Zone had more to say about the book and design. Here’s a highlight:
Vertical would earn kudos simply for bringing such a challenging and uncommercial project to press, but their edition of Ode to Kirihito is exemplary. Vertical presents the work in “flipped” format to allow for a left-to-right reading style more familiar to Western eyes and commissioned an excellent translation by Camellia Nieh. Normally, the binding isn’t something that calls attention to itself in a book, but it proves to be exceptionally noteworthy when the book is 800+ pages and is still easy to open and read. The only criticism of the book’s design comes from designer Chip Kidd’s use of a separate half-sleeve on the cover, similar to the colored bands he used on Vertical’s Buddha hardcovers or the half a dust jacket on DC’s Batman: Year One deluxe hardcover. These design elements may look wonderful on a desk but are often far more trouble than they’re worth in bookstores or on bookshelves. However, the one on Ode to Kirihito isn’t quite as fragile as those on Kidd’s earlier books, and also serves an interesting artistic function as it slides back and forth on the cover.
Someone else is challenged, it would seem…! What do you think? Leave a comment.
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Posted by Giles, Thursday, December 7, 2006, at 10:04 AM.
Posted to Art | Book design | Books, design, art | Type and typography
