AMC² Issue 9

Archive of Modern Conflict is an independent publisher based in London and this is issue 9 of  their series of journals. AMC's publications on art and photography have won or been shortlisted for many prizes.

AMC² 9 comprises photographs from an exhibition curated by the AMC at the 2014 Brighton Photo Biennial -Amore e Piombo: The Photography of Extremes in 1970s Italy. The works span a period in the tumultuous decade of Italy's Years of Lead – a period when bombings, kidnappings and assassinations became the standard currency of Italian politics.

"The press photographs collated for Amore e Piombo from the archives of Rome-based agency Team Editorial Services reflect the manifold aspects of the period, as the photographers oscillate between pursuing film stars at play and capturing the violence on the streets against a backdrop of industrial unrest and a sexual revolution embracing free love, divorce, abortion, feminism and gay rights."

The front cover has been distressed with jagged pellet/shrapnel holes which has been done brilliantly (they are lasercut). These 'random' marks truly demonstrate the violence that defined these times.

Click on images to enlarge

Size of the publication is 280x205mm, portrait. 4pp cover is on Colorset Bright Red 120gsm. Printed offset litho in one colour both sides. Below image shows inside front cover and page 1 of text.

The next set of text pages is on Colorset Sandstone 120gsm, again printed offset litho in one colour.

The 96pp text is mainly printed on a coated paper (Phoenixmotion 115gsm from Scheufelen ) with the copy (12pp in total) all printed on our Colorset 100% Recycled. You can see from the image below, the way the text runs through the image pages.

The images are incredibly evocative of the time.

The publication is 'three hole sewn' in bright red thread and below shos the binding in the centre spread:

Text section in Colorset Bright Red 120gsm

Text section in Colorset Deep Orange 120gsm:

The below image gives you an idea of just how thick the book is. It is quite unusual to find any publication this thick which is three hole sewn, certainly the thickest that I have ever come across. It still sits nice and flat and works really well.

Inside back pages...

Publisher is Archive of Modern Conflict. Design is by Melanie Mues. This is one of those projects that has it all! History, an amazing subject, superb images with well considered use of the materials, colours and binding.

The print, finishing and binding is simply superb on this book. Print is by Push. The mono reproductions are superb with real depth and the finishing of the distressed holes and binding is superb.

http://www.amcbooks.com/amc2-journal-issue-9
www.muesdesign.com
http://www.push-print.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 14.04.2015

Addendum

I'm pleased to report that on 18th May, this publication won the coveted Kraszna-Krausz Foundation Book Award:

http://www.kraszna-krausz.org.uk/kraszna-krausz-foundation-book-awards/2014-book-awards-results/

 

Since 1985 the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation Book Awards have been the UK’s leading prizes for books on photography and the moving image. Winning books have been those which make original and lasting educational, professional, historical and cultural contributions to the field.

Posted by Justin Hobson 04.06.2015

AMC² Issue4

This is a truly beautiful book, which is just a delight to hold and leaf through.

Archive of Modern Conflict is an independent publisher based in London and this is issue 4 of  their series of journals. (their books on photography and art have won or been shortlisted for many prizes)

 

AMC² issue4 comprises photographs from Collected Shadows, an exhibition curated by the AMC for Paris Photo 2012. The works span a period from the early 1850s to the present day and are by photographers both known and unknown, amongst them Bertha Jaques, Gustave Le Gray, Robert Frank, Willi Ruge, Paul-Émile Miot, Johann Böhm, Ferdinand Quénisset, Mario Giacomelli, Eugene Atget, Josef Sudek and many others, while subjects include earth, fire, air, water and ether as well as divinity, astronomy, meteorology, flight and dance (these words from AMC books)

The size is 230x200mm, portrait and is perfect bound. The publication has an 8pp cover on StarFine White 200gsm. The text is made up using "French-folded" sections on Marazion Ultra 90gsm which gives it a sensational light feel and flows beautifully in the hand. The book has a 14mm spine.

The book has 140pp or printed pages (which I would normally describe as 70 x 4pp French-folded sections) - this actually makes 280pp but because the other side is unprinted and the ends are bound, each 4pp = 2pp. It's a bit tricky but if you think about it, it makes sense. French folding with a material like Marazion Ultra 90gsm feels fantastic because the weight of the material lets the pages flop and flow beautifully. The 8pp cover (pictured below) on Starfine 200gsm contributes to the soft feel. 

The picture below shows the foredge with the "french-folded" text

The book is printed by a Belgian printer, Die Keure, who are based in Bruges. They are one of the most renowned European book printers and they print for many of the high end publishers in Europe. The print and binding is superb on this book. It is printed CMYK throughout but most of the images have a mono/sepia reproductions and it's hard to get the consistency of look and feel in one publication from multiple image sources but this is an admirable result.

 

The designer is Melanie Mues, who I have worked with for many years. It was great to have the opportunity to work on a book project together, especially one as exquisite as this. 

http://www.amcbooks.com/amc2-journal-issue-4
http://www.amc2.org/amc2-issue-4
www.muesdesign.com
www.diekeure.be

Posted by Justin Hobson 17.06.2013