Now Try Something WEIRDER

Yesterday evening I was lucky enough to be invited to the book launch of Michael Johnson's new book: Now Try Something WEIRDER. The launch was at the Johnson Banks studio in Clapham and there were lots of people, drinks and yummy food too.

This is Michael's third book, the others being Problem Solved and Branding in Five and a Half steps, which are both weighty books which have since become required reading amongst design students. Michael spoke about how this book had come about and how this one had been a lot more fun to write!

 ...and there was the opportunity to buy a copy of the book too!

  Thanks to all at JB for a great evening.

...and don't forget to buy the book, which you can do right here:
https://www.laurenceking.com/product/now-try-something-weirder/

http://johnsonbanks.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 10.05.2019



Life - Simon Winnall

Simon Winnall is an advertising photographer, specialising in lifestyle and portraiture work for brands and ad agencies across the world. Here are just some of the names he has worked with: Aquafresh, Bentley, Buckle, BMW, Coca-Cola, DHL, Diageo, Dulux, Ferrari, Folgers Coffee, Halfords, Honda, LG, Lipton, Kopparberg Cider, Microsoft, Nescafé, Nivea, Nokia, Oriflame, Panasonic, Polar, SFR, Sainsbury’s, Sky Sports, Sony, Vodafone, Volvo, Weber Grills, ...and the list goes on!

 

This look-book shows new work and it is a particularly lovely piece of print. The 4pp cover is 325x235mm, portrait and is saddle stitched, however the text pages are a smaller size of 275x210mm, centred inside the cover.

The below image shows the way the text pages sit inside the cover....

It has to be said the size and proportion of the cover and text are just right, the pages just turn and fold well without being dwarfed by the large cover. 

The cover is printed on our Omnia White 280gsm and the 16pp text on 150gsm, the results of which are superb. The look and feel of the whole publication is very uncoated and tactile but there is absolutely no loss of detail in the images as you can see in the detail image below...

Click on images to enlarge

Inside back spread...

A lovely touch is the use of Copper wire for the saddle stitches, which matches the copper foil which is on the front cover...

You are probably assuming that this quality piece of print is printed offset litho, but you would be wrong. This job is printed on a new type of digital printing press, it is a Fujifilm Jet Press 720S. This new B2 size digital press is a commercial inkjet printer, which has been built to produce high-quality short run to medium run digital print. Push Print in London installed the press last year and as you can see from the result on this job, it is producing the high quality print that Push is renowned for.

You can read more about the new Fujifilm Jet Press 720S here or watch their video here...

Photography, design and production is by Simmon Winnall.

http://www.simonwinnall.com/
www.processphotography.com
http://www.push-print.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 08.05.2019



Canalpath Creative - Cards

Canalpath are a creative agency based in Edinburgh who have recently created their new business cards. The cards are the standard UK business card size of 55x85mm in a landscape format and are produced on our range called Remake.

The cards are simply (but beautifully) printed in one colour and debossed on the face on Remake Sky 380gsm which is duplexed to Remake midnight 380gsm to make a 760gsm, 1mm thick card. The reverse side on the black (midnight) is clear gloss UV varnished.

Click on images to enlarge

Remake is the range produced by Favini and Remake is leather ‘upcycling’ on an industrial scale and represents the latest frontier in upcycling in the paper sector. This unique and innovative paper replaces 25% of wood tree pulp with leather residues. You can read more about Remake here.

Below you can see the duplexed cards.

The below image shows detail of the debossing...

Production of the cards is by Steve Thorburn at Base Print Solutions and they have made an exceptional job of the production.

https://canalpath.com/
http://www.baseprintsolutions.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 03.05.2019

Jobs from the past - Number 115

Regular followers of this blog will know that my first post of every month is a "job from the past" so that I can show some of the really good work from years gone by - this project is from 2013.

McQ AW2013
McQ, is a contemporary brand from Alexander McQueen which takes inspiration from street culture "evoking the varied and ever-evolving style tribes that spring up around Britain’s rich music and art scenes. Drawing on references from uniform and the military, core staples of the British wardrobe are re-imagined each season in new guises. Traditional techniques are used in contemporary ways, creating pieces that are both functional and beautiful"

Creative Director of McQ is Sarah Burton (who next month will be receiving an international award from the CFDA - Council of Fashion Designers of America)

This is the look-book produced for the 2013 collection last year and is simply an exceptional piece of design and print.

The format is A3, portrait. The whole publication is printed on our Astralux [1 sided] 115gsm which is exceptionally high gloss on one side and is uncoated on the reverse. The whole design has played with the opposing coated and uncoated printed and plain areas with dramatic effect.

Opening spread - an uncoated spread

Second spread - high gloss

Click on images to enlarge

It is a 32pp self cover and is unbound, so each of the 4pp section can easily be removed and viewed as an A2 size poster. The monochrome images are reproduced in four colour process (CMYK) printed Offset Litho

Centre spread - high gloss

Uncoated spread - note the right hand page, just printed solid black - gives the project a wonderful sense of space.

The remarkable photography is by Roger Deckker. The superb printing on this paper is by Identity Print. One of the tricky things here is to get the consistency of reproduction between the gloss coated side of the sheet and the uncoated reverse. The result is simply stunning. Gloss sometimes faces gloss, sometimes faces uncoated - it plays with the senses.

Spread below is uncoated on the left page and high gloss on the right..

As I hope the below image shows, it creates great contrast between the dead flat mattness of the uncoated and the high gloss...

Click on images to enlarge

Design and art direction was by Charlie Thomas, in house at Alexander McQueen.

The printing and production is by Identity Print, based in Paddock Wood in Kent and the print quality and repro, in particular is quite simply superb. David Blakeman dealt with the project at Identity and handled the print production.

http://www.alexandermcqueen.com/gb/mcq
http://www.rogerdeckker.com/
www.identityprint.co.uk
www.favini.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 01.05.2019 

De La Warr Pavilion Events Guide

This is the latest events guide for the De La Warr Pavilion. The De La Warr pavilion is on the seafront in Bexhill in Sussex and is an iconic modernist building by the architects Erich Mendelsohn and Serge Chermayeff which opened in 1936. Following a major renovation in 2005, the pavilion hosts many shows, exhibitions and cultural events.

The finished size is 210x111mm, folding out to 420x553mm and is a 20pp concertina letter fold. Side view.... 

Click on images to enlarge

Below image shows the concertina folding...

This guide is printed on our StarFine White 130gsm which means that rather than feeling like the vast majority of mass produced leaflets printed on a bit of silk or gloss, this has real character and value. The design is such that the listings of the exhibitions, activities and events are all listed on one side (outside)

Click on images to enlarge

...with the inside being reserved for a full size image from the exhibition.

Lucy Orta , Procession Banners 1918-2018

The new De La Warr identity and design (including the website) is by Playne Design who have studios in London and Hastings. Creative Director is Clare Playne. Print production is handled by Simon Hack. You can read more about the creation of the new identity here:
https://playnedesign.co.uk/our-work/de-la-warr-pavilion/#branding-modernist-cultural-icon

 

The project is printed offset litho in CMYK by Empress Litho with Jason Maclaren handling the project - and my thanks to Jason for very kindly sending me some file copies.

https://www.dlwp.com/

http://www.playnedesign.co.uk/
https://www.empresslitho.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 26.04.2019

Chromolux Swatch

Chromolux is a 'cast coated' paper which has a very high gloss and lustre and has an international reputation for quality. Last year we became their UK stockist and distributor.

 The mill has produced some "fan" swatches which are housed in this foam book cover.

Chromolux 700 is a white premium, super glossy, coated board with an ultra smooth surface. Ideal for luxury packaging applications. The range has excellent flatness and dimensional stability and is direct food contact approved (ISEGA). FSC Certified 

https://zanders.de/en/home.php

Posted by Justin Hobson 22.04..2019

Extreme Imagination

The first ever exhibition of works of art created by artists who have no “mind’s eye” casts new light on the creative brain. Extreme Imagination: inside the mind’s eye features works by people who cannot visualise, alongside works by those who have particularly vivid mental imagery.

This is the catalogue for ‘Extreme Imagination: inside the mind’s eye’, an art exhibition produced by the Eye’s Mind research team at The University of Exeter College of Medicine and Health, curated by Susan Aldworth and Matthew MacKisack.

Extreme Imagination: inside the mind’s eye presents their artwork, inviting us to consider the impact of these phenomena on the creative process. How can someone make anything without being able to imagine what they want it to look like? Is there a distinctly hyperphantasic kind of art? Aphantasia and its opposite teach us about human diversity: the easily-missed, potentially startling differences between individuals’ inner lives. The work of the participating artists – and designers, architects, and writers – demonstrates the diversity of means by which things come to be made, challenging long-held beliefs about what it means to be ‘creative’. Find interviews with participating artists here.

The catalogue is divided in two halves in what I would describe as a 'double-ender' - the catalogue can be read from either side – essays on the art, science and philosophy of ‘extreme imagination’ one way; turn it over and you see artist interviews preceding their work on the other.

Size of the publication is 190x115mm, portrait and is perfect bound. The 108pp text is printed on Chromolux 1 sided 120gsm from Zanders in Germany. Chromolux is a cast coated paper, which is gloss one side and uncoated reverse. This publication has been collated in such a way that the gloss coated is one side facing an uncoated side as you can see in the image below:

The uncoated side is matt and tactile as you can see below...

Gloss spread on left, uncoated on right...

reading the other way, uncoated on left, gloss spread on right...

The cover is printed on the black cover material from that other, Hull based, paper merchant! Below shows the very neat, perfect binding.

Extreme Imagination: inside the mind’s eye ran at the Tramway in Glasgow, from January to March and is now at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter, until the 2nd of June.

Catalogue concept and design is by Valle Walkley. Print is by Push.

http://sites.exeter.ac.uk/eyesmind/2018/12/12/extreme-imagination-inside-the-minds-eye/
https://en-gb.facebook.com/thevisualimagination/
http://www.vallewalkley.com/
http://www.push-print.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 16.04.2019