Nat-ional-Re-con-struct-ion Book Launch

Nat-ional-Re-con-struct-ion is a self-promotional project by Studio Sutherl& exploring the visual and verbal language of flags and national identity.

"Flags are a potent symbol of national identity: an example of visual communication in its purest form. Their shapes represent the land, sea and sky. Suns, moons and stars. Solidarity, religion and freedom. Their colours represent physical and emotional attributes. At a time when the world is riven with nationalist tensions, global challenges and diseases, it’s a small flag raised for play and creativity."

On Wednesday evening, Jim Sutherland hosted a book launch at D&AD where he spoke about the project together with writer and poet Nick Asbury.

...and there was a whole table of flags to be cut up and reconstructed

Jim Sutherland gave a talk explaining how the project began and it's evolution through D&AD workshops to the eventual production of the book.

The Nat-ional-Re-con-struct-ion book is 115 x 200mm, Landscape and is digitally printed in a limited edition of just 200 copies with 50 different cover designs.

The text is digitally printed (HP Indigo) on our lovely Offenbach Bible 80gsm.

"Nat-ional-Re-con-struct-ion explores the visual and verbal language of flags and national identity. This book is an excercise in deconstruction and reconstruction. At a time when the world is riven with nationalist tensions, global challenges and diseases that respect no borders, it is a small flag raised for play and creativity."

The book is beautifully printed and bound by Boss Print.

It was a wonderful evening and so good to get out and meet people physically again. There are still copies available, so you can still buy a copy HERE.

Posted by Justin Hobson 10.12.2021

D&AD Awards 2020

Yesterday evening it was the D&AD awards, which this year, was an online affair. I've been fortunate to have been invited to the awards dinner a few times over the years and been on the table of those who have won yellow pencils for projects for which I've had input and they have been very memorable evenings!

Given the circumstances, the awards this year were very well executed and superbly presented by D&AD President Kate Stanners Saatchi & Saatchi Global CCO).

A phenomenal 618 pencils were awarded, including 384 Wood, 150 Graphite, 68 Yellow, and 4 elusive Black Pencils. One of the black pencils worthy of note was for typeface Universal Sans, a variable typeface that allows for an extensive range of customisation and unique variations produced by Family Type.

This year, many of the studios that I have worked with over the years, including Johnson Banks, NB Studio, Magpie, Osborne Ross and Here Design, to name but a few, have been nominated and won awards.

It's always lovely to have been involved with a project which has won an award and even better, a project which has won two awards...

Twenty-five Sculptures In Five Dimensions was a self-promotional project for writer Tom Sharp. It was a demonstration of creativity within strict technical writing and design restraints, an experiment in reading and seeing, and an attempt at creating a sublime, meaningful experience with as few elements as possible.

I wrote about the actual event on my blog, last November  HERE.

Tom Sharp filled a high-ceilinged church in Covent Garden with 25 plinths. Each plinth held a text created to a strict format of five syllables per line, five lines plus a title. Each piece of writing described an original, imaginary object, so that any emotional response the reader had was because of the object they conjured up, rather than language manipulation.

The project was a collaboration with Studio Sutherl&. Tom Sharp and Jim Sutherland are the Creative Directors, writer is Tom Sharp and the designer is Rosey Trickett. The printed sheets were all printed on our wonderful Sixties paper and printed offset litho by Boss Print.

Yesterday evening this project was awarded a Graphite Pencil [Graphic Design] for Self Promotion and a Yellow Pencil [Graphic Design] for Writing for Graphic Design.

Congratulations to all participants in this year's awards. It has been a strange year, but life goes on and it's great to see that the creative industry is still producing and recognising great work, even in these unprecedented times.

You can watch the 2020 D&AD awards and check out the winners HERE

https://www.thepoetryofitall.com/
http://studio-sutherland.co.uk/
https://www.bossprint.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 11.09.2020

40 years of posters, circulars & talks...

Yesterday evening I was privileged to have been invited to the Typographic Circle 40th Anniversary exhibition, celebration and party!

TypoCircle, as it is usually referred to, was formed in 1976 to bring together anyone with an interest in type and typography. They stage a variety of type and typography related events including a series of diverse monthly lectures by well-known industry speakers, and the annual New York Type Directors Club exhibition. The list of previous speakers have included Alan Kitching, Stefan Sagmeister, Mike Dempsey, Ken Garland, Studio8, Erik Spiekermann, MadeThought, Michael Johnson, Anthony Burrill, Michael Wolff, Sir John Hegarty… to name just a few.  This event also launched the new logo (above) designed by NB: Studio and Studio Sutherl& and made by Bruno Maag.

Besides being serious about type, they are a very sociable organisation with a reputation for staging enjoyable events and this was certainly one of them!

The exhibition was curated in a large part by NB:Studio, working with Studio Sutherl&, Jon Bateson and everyone on the small but dedicated committee. The exhibition features 40 years of TypoCircle posters and Circulars, as well as some incredible ephemera, diligently squirrelled away by past committee members for such an occasion as this.

The exhibition includes a selection of nineteen issues of Circular, the Typocircle publication which in recent times has been designed by Domenic Lippa, printed by Richard Davey on paper sponsored by GF Smith.

This gives you an idea of some of the posters that were on display - printed by Gavin Martin Colournet on paper sponsored by GF Smith.

A publication comprising of three parts has been produced to support the exhibition. Designed in collaboration by NB:Studio, Studio Sutherl& and Jon Bateson. The first section is written by Lynda Relph-Knight and Sallyanne Theodosiou. The second is dedicated to spreads from all of the Circulars produced by Domenic Lippa and his team at Pentagram. And the final section contains 40 individual posters from the TypoCircle archive.

Above is a picture of the book, together with with the poster (designed by Studio Sutherl&) also printed by Gavin Martin Colournet on Colorplan 175gsm sponsored by GF Smith. The superb orange tote bag is sponsored by Streamline. Copies of the book are available from Typocircle.

My thanks to the TypoCircle committee for inviting me. This small band of people need some serious recognition for their time, drive and dedication. They are... Chairman: Alan Dye | President: John Bateson | Honorary Secretary: Val Kildea | Vice Chairman: Louise Sloper |Treasurer: Sallyanne Theodosiou | Membership: Antony Long | Committee Members: Jon Checkley, Dominic Lippa, Jim Sutherland, Olly St John. All these people freely give their time for the benefit of others and must be admired.

I must also mention the Typocircle sponsors, without whom none of this would have been possible: JWT, GF Smith, Pentagram, Baseline Magazine, Magma, NB Studio, Gavin Martin Colournet, Wynkyn De Worde Society, Laurence King, Creative Review, Streamline, Studio Sutherl&.

...and lastly, courtesy of Alan Dye at NB:Studio, here's a great picture of me with Kath Tudball from The Partners, in front of the TypoCircle logo inspired blackboard.


Membership of TypoCircle is open to anyone with an interest in type and typography, and there are no entry tests or examinations. As I have said many times on this blog before, it's very important to support organisations such as the TypoCircle and events such as this - why not get involved! ...individual membership is just £30.00!

The exhibition at the Protein Gallery, Shoreditch, runs until Sunday 23rd October, 10-5pm and entry is free.
https://www.typocircle.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 21.10.2016

Boxes in Boxes

The nature of this blog means that most of the projects I write about are either on paper supplied by Fenner Paper and more often than not, because I've had some personal involvement in the project. However, sometimes a piece of print comes along (where I have had no involvement) that is so utterly worthy of note that I feel it needs bringing to your attention and this is one of those pieces!

This is actually quite a high profile piece of work having won a yellow pencil at D&AD this April, so you may have seen it before but for those of you who haven't read on...

Firstly I'll explain the background. Boss Print are a printer based in Acton, west London, who's work has appeared on this blog many times before. Over the years when they had put out box-making to various 'trade' box-makers, they had been frustrated with the quality of the boxes they had received back and however hard they managed the project there was always some dissatisfaction with the quality of the end result. Just to clarify, we are talking about 'paper over board' rigid boxes here. Consequently, last year they invested in their own equipment, staff and  (most important of all) staff training so that they could make their own boxes 'in-house'. They started to make beautiful boxes (and they really are the most amazing quality) but were faced with the problem of letting their existing and new customers know about this new service ...enter Studio Sutherl&!

Jim Sutherland has worked with Boss for many years and having seen the amazing quality of the boxes created this superb demonstration piece using the words "There was an old lady that swallowed a fly" - from a well known cumulative children's song and working the story into the "Russian doll" type set of boxes.

To give you an idea of scale, the size of the first box (which is a lid pictured above) is 208(h) x 178(w) x 83(d)mm. The lid comes off to reveal what is described as a 'flush finish box'.

The 'flush finish box', (in white) which has a magnetic flap, opens to reveal a 'clamshell' box (in sand colour)

Click on images to enlarge

The clamshell box opens to reveal a 'flush finish lid/tray box'

 ...just look at the superb finish on these boxes - an amazing snug fit and beautifully turned edges and corners. This is real craftsmanship. 

The Flush finish box opens to reveal an 'overlap lid/tray box' (pale blue)

As you can see the hot foil blocking appears on the top, sides and even insides of the boxes.  

 

Inside the overlap box is a 'matchbox' (yellow)

Opening like so... 

Inside the matchbox (which has a red liner) is a slipcase (grey)

...and inside the slipcase is a little casebound book.  

The book gives the lyrics of the whole story/poem/song written by Alan Mills with lyrics by Rose Bonne in 1952. It also lists all the styles of boxes and all the credits for those involved, including all the paper, which was supplied by Fedrigoni.

Design is by Studio Sutherl&. Creative director is Jim Sutherland and the designer on the project is Alice Tosey.

It really isn't easy to try and convey the quality of manufacture of these boxes. Everything fits superbly and there isn't a ripple or a bowing of the board to be seen on any of these boxes. The two images below, I hope will demonstrate the super tight tolerances that the boxes are made to:

This is the whole set of boxes sitting together...

You can read more about the project and see much better images that I can take on the following link:

http://studio-sutherland.co.uk/projects/boxes-in-boxes

It most deservedly won a yellow pencil at this years D&AD awards and was shortlisted in two categories of the DesignWeek Awards, winning the award for Print Communications.

...and I'm sure if you have a project, where you are looking for a beautiful bespoke rigid box, Boss print would be more than happy to hear from you! ...just email Bonnie Lo (bonnie@bossprint.com) at Boss and I'm sure she will be pleased to help.

https://www.bossprint.com/
http://studio-sutherland.co.uk/
http://www.fedrigoni.com/en/

Posted by Justin Hobson on 26.08.2016

The Graphic Lexicon Poster Series

At the D&AD awards last Thursday, this project was awarded a wooden pencil. This series of posters has been created using the 'running sheets' from the sections of a book produced by Jim Sutherland. The book is called The Graphic Lexicon and is a celebration of the stories – fact and folklore – behind English words, symbols and punctuation.

I shall write about the book in a future post, suffice to say that it is just printed in two colours, offset litho. For these posters, the title was overprinted (in red) on one side of each section - hiding and highlighting parts of the words - the result in some instances, being the creation of new words. The results were not contrived, they are all happy accidents!

Click on images to enlarge

The paper used in the book and consequently the posters is Shiro Echo, White 100gsm (100% Recycled) which has just the right neutral shade of white for a book.

Printed Offset Litho in two colours with a further one colour overprint by Boss Print who are based in Acton, London.
I've only reproduced a few here, in total, it is a series of twelve posters.. You can read more about the project here: http://studio-sutherland.co.uk/projects/the-graphic-lexicon

www.dandad.org
http://studio-sutherland.co.uk/
https://www.bossprint.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 25.05.2016