A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design Greg Thomas
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
Throughout time books have evolved into revolutionary ob-
jects. This has been witnessed across the span of history. They
ginning to provide not only visual appeal that embodies the text,
are vital components in transpiring ideas and purpose. Books
but also to attract readers. The earliest ways of pulling people in
consist of collections of folios (themselves a collection of leaves),
using book covers was typically done through painting. As ear-
which contain writings and/or illustrations, and are bound and
ly as the thirteenth century, manuscripts were ornamented with
covered, in some manner. Through this format, thoughts in
paint, silver, gold, and jewels. They are referred to as “illuminat-
history have traveled far and wide reaching an assortment of au-
ed manuscripts�. These manuscripts grew in popularity due to
diences. In an increasingly digital age, the materiality of those
the heavily adorned objects and spread throughout Western Eu-
thoughts, provided by books in the past has become more popu-
rope and Asia. The increased spread of religions also aided in the
larized through other mediums, such as, the iPad or Kindle. The
growth of production of illustrated and illustrated books. Even-
e-books and print-on-demand technology will change the tradi-
tually, around the fourteenth to fifteenth century books gained a
tional way books are received. Although this is the case, helping
necessary importance in societies because they were a appealing-
to maintain the physical life of books can be credited to their cov-
ly medium for ideas to travel. The artwork done in books eclipsed
ers: the face and context of the book. The ability to recognize and
other forms of art during the time and was highly valued. Illus-
identify printed texts has been accomplished through memorable
trations at the time typically reflected a cultural synthesis of the
book covers. Book covers are not only a physical embodiment of
times. Typically they showed interest amongst the dominant
the expressions of author’s ideas, but can also present an aesthet-
groups that could afford to produce and buy these pieces of writ-
ic reference to a cultural history. Book cover design has played a
ing. Artists soon became a part of the book-making group along
critical role for books, and has evolved throughout the span of
side the bookbinder, printer, typographer, layout artist, and even-
history, by preserving thoughts, expressions, and information
tually an illustrator/photographer.
through the use of graphic design.
Books have been illustrated and/or decorated from the be-
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
Rockwell kent / moby dick (front board above, interior right) / 1930 / random house
ernst reichl / ulysses / 1934 / random house
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
The development of the book continued. The hand-operated
printing press was introduced by Guttenberg in the fifteenth
advanced, industrialization took its place, and books became in-
Beginning in the late eighteenth century, as technology
century and put the book into faster production. The book cover-
creasingly manufactured. The handcrafted process of the book
ings then, were thick and durable functioning solely, to protect
slowly diminished. While still a valued commodity, the illustra-
the prized texts, which were not so easily produced. The protec-
tion and typography became a manufactured process. Painting
tive outsides of the book were often ornamented as a statement
became lithography, and calligraphy became typesetting. The
of authority by the higher class. They were uncommon to a major
demand of books increased, and likewise the manufacturing
portion of society, due to their expensive creative process. Book
process of these books, transforming the way illustration and
covers were created using printing and lithography, but were also
text were created. In the nineteenth century the development of
decorated with precious elements such as, gold, silver and other
a steam-powered printing press allowed for books to be printed
rare or precious gems.
on a considerably larger scale than before. With greater expectations of efficiency through mechanical production, there was more reliance on the machinery printing processes. The mass production had shaped the development of lackluster formal tendencies because of the push for assembly. The individuality that books and book covers possessed became lost during the end of the century.
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
Gyorgy kepes / false coin / 1959 / little, brown, & company
e. mcknight /ulysses / 1949 / random house
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
w.a. dwiggins / the time machine / 1931 / random house
george salter / the scarf / 1947 / the dial press
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
e. mcknight kauffer / the ill-tempered clavichord / 1952 / simon & schuster
arthur hawkins / bases overseas / 1944 / harcourt, brace & company
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
While printing ended the medieval type of illustration and
Book cover design became a creative forum for expres-
decoration, it opened up new areas of exploration, such as, typog-
sion around the world and encompassed the movements, styles,
raphy. The early nineteenth century dates the first book jacket,
and ideologies that surrounded the time of their conception. In
which was used primarily as a protective outer layer for the text
Europe, the Cubism movement distorted traditional forms and
block. It had no intentional attractive nature, lacking illustrations
notions of representation, implementing abstraction. Futurists
or labels. The book jackets only began to gain their importance at
and Dadaists followed suit, including inspired formal elements
the end of the century, when it was recognized that it could in-
from Cubism, and experimenting with typography as a new com-
vite potential buyers. In the beginning of the twentieth century,
municative element, no longer was it a passive part of the content.
book jackets began to be realized as a promotional instrument for
The artists of De Stijl and Constructivism contributed to some of
designers, giving book covers much more attention. Book cover
the enormous leaps in modern design. They polished the concen-
design and graphic design as a profession developed simultane-
tration of form into simplistically pure geometric elements, and
ously, aiding one another’s success. Slowly, book designs began to
also projected some ideologies that would comment on society.
become better thought-out in early twentieth century because it
During the early twentieth century, social and political upheaval
was a way for designers to reconstruct the speculative center of
would play major roles in the art movements. Many of the Eu-
design. Book cover design was an important creative expression
ropean artists and designers fled Europe to head for America,
for early, progressive designers, for it was to be, not only a pro-
where much influence was made in modern design.
motion of the designer’s individuality, but also meeting the needs of clients. If a book has some literary excellence, the book cover must represent the expression of the author, so a designer had the task of meeting this reputation on a commercial level.
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
Paul rand / thoughts on design / 1945 / wittenborn & Company
fred troller / seeing and the eye / 1973 / doubleday anchor books
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
designer unknown / purple-biolet-squish / 1969 / zondervan publishing house
lawrence ratzkin / ashes to ashes / 1971 / simon & schuster
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
The Bauhaus in Chicago gave life to modernist principles in
As design practices started taking new directions, so did
the 1930’s by those who immigrated. Book cover designers dur-
books as a whole. Designers during the mid century and 1960’s
ing that time began to not only design the cover, but to illustrate
were not only designing books, but were also authoring them.
the inside of the book as well. The devotion to the book made de-
Modernism was also proving to be successfully incorporated into
signing a book a more serious and lucrative process. Around that
book cover design. All aspects of book cover design began work-
time, the slipcover was also introduced, providing a different out-
ing better than ever for the publisher, author, and designer. In the
er shell for the book other than a book jacket. The Surrealist and
1970’s cover design reached a point of limitation, most likely due
Art Deco movement had an impact on the modern designs at this
to the social and cultural unrest regarding a decade of war, racial
time with, collage, geometric abstraction, photomontage, and fig-
strain, and political controversies. Although there were still in-
ure drawing. By the middle of the century, book cover design was
fluential movements, such as the Psychedelia, and Pop/Op Art.
developing into an extensively marketable profession.
In the 1980’s and 1990’s, a move towards post-modern design and the digital revolution began to form new mainstream looks with a depersonalized expression. Many designers started to incorporate their own eclectic styles, varying back and forth between looks. While innovative design was continuing to manifest itself in a variety of ways, there was not a definitive look to the end of the twentieth century. In the twenty-first century, book cover design has emerged as a popular form of creative expression in a physical piece, but what is it now?
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
carin goldberg / ulysses / 1986 / random house
ernst reichl / ulysses / 2002 / random house
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
alan peckolick & tom carnase/ beards / 1976/ harcourt, brace & jovanavich
paul sahre/ killing the buddha / 2003/ free press
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
Because books house and circulate some pertinent infor-
mation and attempt to reach a certain audience, having a book cover has been essential to texts survival. Cover design is, and always will be a niche field for graphic designers, whether it is for a book, or an album, movie, etc. But, this niche seems to be a challenge for designers who have to compete with the ever-corporate world of publishing. The cover to a book hosts an assortment of engaging qualities that a designer should always be up for tackling. A book cover allows graphic designers to participate in an act of visual, constructive meaning. Book cover design should stick around.
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
aknowledgements
photo credits: By Its Cover: Modern American Book Cover Design
http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/opr/t118/e126
drew ned
5?q=illuminated&search=quick&pos=1&_start=1#firsthit
http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/ T009964?goto=book&pos=1
By Its Cover: Modern American Book Cover Design drew ned
The Book: Its History and Development cyril davenport
typeset in: Mercury TextG4 and Gotham
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design
A Brief Look at Book Cover Design