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Design Category
Book design, 2003
Design firm
MOD/Michael Osborne Design (San Francisco, California)
Collection
(2004) 50 Books/50 Covers of 2003
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The Yosemite Association asked us to design and print a limited-edition version of an early account of a woman’s trip to Yosemite shortly after 1900. They wanted to incorporate line drawings that were specially commissioned to illustrate the text. The intended audience was Yosemite lovers and collectors, plus aficionados of finely printed books. The main purpose of the project was to get the unpublished chronicle into print so that it would become part of the literature of Yosemite.
Though the account was not in diary form (that is, there were no dated, day-by-day entries), it did follow a strict chronological sequence. We decided to develop the publication in the form of a quasi journal in the style of the period. We used the illustrations as if they were sketches made by the author as she traveled, and the string binding and “label” on the cover suggest the look of a journal.
Printed in an edition of 250 copies, the book was very successful, selling out within a year of publication.
In terms of environmental responsibility, the entire text was printed on 100 percent cotton paper.
“Simple, clean, elegant, refreshing representation of tradition.” Archie Ferguson
“Traditional, beautiful, lovely. Old World and inviting. Good use of the doubled-over page—works well with binding. Nothing innovative but carries on a great tradition of bookmaking.”