Alga Carta - updated range

It was in October 1995 that we were first appointed as the exclusive distributors for Alga Carta from the Favini paper mill in Italy. Favini pioneered the use of alternative fibres in the 1990's and Alga Carta was their flagship brand, which even got a mention on BBC Tomorrow's World on television here in the UK!

The range has now been refreshed and the mill have produced these lovely new swatches...

Alga Carta is manufactured partly using algae (seaweed)  harvested from the fragile marine areas, combined with FSC certified fibres. Algae blooms in abundance in certain areas, clogging up the flow of water in lagoons and endangering the eco-balance of the area.

Images showing the Algae and the dredging of Algae from the Venice lagoon

As you can see from the image below, the paper has specks which are visible in the sheet and is actually micronized algae - which contains Chlorophyll. Unlike other papers with inclusions, these specks are less noticeable and doesn't affect images or interfere with type so much. 

Click on images to enlarge

To complete the story of sustainability, Alga Carta is recyclable, biodegradable and made using EKOenergy from a hydro electric power station. Alga Carta carries the FSC™ certification, even though like the name implies it has no impact on forests.

It is available in two shades, White and Ivory. If you would like one of these lovely new swatches, please email me: justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/

Posted by Justin Hobson 17.08.2021

Wood Sage & Sea Salt

Jo Malone is a London based company renowned for British bespoke fragrances for Women, Men and the Home. This is the superb promotional collateral for their Wood Sage & Sea Salt fragrance... 'Escape the everyday along the windswept shore. Waves breaking white, the air fresh with sea salt and spray. The mineral scent of rugged cliffs, mingling with earthy sage'

The finished size is 150mm square and is concertina folded out to a size of 900x150mm and you can see the birdseye image below:

Click on images to enlarge

The below image shows both sides laid out flat...

It is printed on our Kaizen 350gsm, which is a dead flat matt uncoated text and cover range with a surface treatment and the result is it prints amazingly but still doesn't feel like a coated paper.

Kaizen has a high whiteness and an excellent bulk. It isn't just CMYK that prints superbly. As you can see from the image below, solid flat colours reproduce superbly.

On a simple piece of collateral like this, the attention to detail makes all the difference. As you can see from the detail image below, it has been properly and beautifully creased. Perfectly square and perfectly executed...

Art direction and design is by the Jo Malone design team. Superb repro, print and finishing is by CPI Colour with Mark Pitman handling the project.

https://www.jomalone.co.uk/scents/woody/wood-sage-sea-salt
https://www.cpi-print.co.uk/

 Posted by Justin Hobson 13.08.2021

Repeat Repeat

Freelands Foundation was founded by Elisabeth Murdoch and is based in Camden, London. The Foundation’s mission is to support artists and cultural institutions, to broaden audiences for the visual arts and to enable all young people to engage actively with the creation and enjoyment of art.

The multidisciplinary group exhibition, Repeat Repeat, was curated by Freelands Foundation Creative Director Henry Ward. The show investigates ideas of daily practice and repeated routine while addressing questions relating to domesticity, parenting and occupation. It features internationally recognised artists alongside creative individuals who would not necessarily call themselves artists.

This is the literature produced to support the exhibition. The portrait format publication which consists of a 4pp cover on Colorset Flint 270gsm with a 24pp text printed on StarFine White 150gsm.

The cover on 100% Recycled Colorset Flint 270gsm is beautifully debossed and hot foil blocked in matt white foil.

The text pages are printed offset litho in CMYK on our StarFine White 150gsm, an uncoated text paper which has printed beautifully, with the solid and the images looking brilliant.

Birdseye image below...

The saddle stitching is nice and neat and the job sits nice and flat.

The publication is designed by Utile. Creative Director is Nicholas Duggins and designer is William Lyall. Print is by Identity Print, based in Paddock Wood with Paul Martin handling the project.

You can read more about the exhibition here.

https://www.freelandsfoundation.co.uk/
https://utile.studio/
http://www.identityprint.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 10.07.2021

New Yard Restaurant Menus

The New Yard Restaurant is situated in the historic stable yard at Trelowarren in Cornwall, a private estate that has been owned by the same family for over 600 years. The New Yard restaurant is run by Caroline and Jeffrey Robinson. Previously granted awards for their creativity and innovation, in 2021, the New Yard was awarded a Green Michelin Star, an award that recognises gastronomy as well as sustainable practices at the forefront of the industry.

...and these are their lovely menus:

Printed on our Crush Kiwi, which is made using 15% residues from the processing of Kiwi fruit plus 40% recycled post-industrial waste and the remainder is FSC certified virgin pulp.

They feel great in the hand and look beautiful on the tables.

Design is by Studio 1850 with illustrations by Joshua Vyvyan. Each menu is printed in-house everyday, as the ingredients allow! Thank you to the New Yard Restaurant for the images.

https://www.newyardrestaurant.co.uk/

https://studio1850.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 05.08.2021

Jobs from the past - Number 141

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 projects from years gone by. 

Picpus Issue 02 - Spring 2010

Picpus is a free magazine edited by Charles Asprey and Simon Grant. It carries articles from the art world, with a particular interest in historical curiosities, overlooked artists, arts and politics and is distributed through a selection of specialised art bookshops, galleries and libraries.

The format of Picpus is a folded down broadsheet, measuring 594x420mm (A1 size) which folds down to a 32pp A6 (105x148mm) finished size.

Folding out to...

Picpus is printed quarterly and there have been 25 issues published. You can read this issue and other isues HERE.

Below shows the broadsheet folded out...

...and the reverse side:

Picpus is printed on Redeem 100% Recycled 80gsm and is printed offset litho, in just one colour (black) on both sides. Design is by Alfonso Iacurci and is printed by Push Print based in London.

The above image shows the open top, which is sealed using a small, perforated label, which holds it neatly together until opening.

https://www.picpuspress.com/

https://www.push-print.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 02.08.2021

Diamond Dolls

Diamond Dolls is an artist book by Hormazd Narielwalla, co-published by Concentric Editions and EMH Arts, London. It takes the form of a limited edition (300 copies) made as an artist’s book in 3 Acts.

Diamond Dolls is a sumptuous artist’s book that originates from a sequence of Hormazd Narielwalla’s highly distinctive paper collages. The below image shows the front cover...

Conceived as a sculptural object in three parts and designed to stand like a series of shoji screens, the original collages are printed front and back to reveal the ‘artifice’ of cutting and pasting involved in their construction, while the foiling of paper edges and details of de-bossed abstract patterns, gives the opening and arranging of the book a tactile and performative quality.

Thirty six images carry a running motif of Bowie’s ‘Ziggy Stardust’ persona, each of which is defined by elaborate, decorative costuming. Cipher-like, the figures reference the Japanese gender-fluid traditions of kabuki and onnagata, which influenced Bowie in his approach to challenging conventions about sexuality.

The books are litho printed by PrintSmith on our Omnia 200gsm. Omnia was chosen for it's dead flat matt characteristics plus a tactile feel but as you can see, with great colour reproduction. PrintSmith printed this project using their expanded colour gamut process, which makes for the super bright colour rendition of the works along with super sharp detail, which as you can see from these images is amazing.

The concertina folded pages are printed front and back to reveal the of cutting and pasting of the original construction, below shows a detail...

The finished size of each three books is 240x165mm, portrait and each book is a 28pp concertina. The below image shows how the pages fold over as a conventional book, when folded up.

The full extent of the long concertina...

This superb book is currently being exhibited at the Eagle Gallery in Farringdon Road (until 7th August), the picture below, shows the book (and the slipcase) at the exhibition.

There is also an installation in the window at Essie Carpets on Piccadilly.

This is a truly stunning piece of work and has been exceptionally well received in the artworld. A superb piece of print and finishing by Fenton at PrintSmith. Thanks to Hormazd Narielwalla, EMH Arts and PrintSmith for the images.

https://www.narielwalla.com/

http://www.emmahilleagle.com/exhibitions/current-exhibition/

https://www.printsmith.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 30.07.2021

LCBA Identity

The new type-led identity for the London Centre for Book Arts (LCBA) is by Studio Bergini which is run by Francesco Corsini and Kristian Hjorth Berge. The striking new identity makes excellent use of our Colorset range of 100% Recycled papers...

The gift cards (below) are hot foil blocked in-house at the LCBA using Colorset 270gsm in Pink Ice, Evergreen and Mango (in the middle!) and are triplexed.

There are also bookmarks and a whole host of other collateral...

Typefaces are Original Sans and Caslon Ionic, both from Commercial Classics. All production is 'in-house' at the LCBA.

Many thanks to Studio Bergini for the images. In a recent email with Fran, he reminded me that he was at a talk I gave at CSM back in 2014. He found my talk about different materials and printing processes  inspiring, which is always lovely to know - thank you Fran.

https://londonbookarts.org/

https://studiobergini.eu/

Posted by Justin Hobson 28.07.2021