Designing a book featuring the work of a living master is an extraordinary challenge. In the catalog Irving Penn: Platinum Prints, this challenge is compounded by the rich paradox existing in the photographs themselves. While many of the images in this volume were originally intended for lively editorial and advertising contexts, where they were often cheaply reproduced, Penn’s sumptuous platinum prints want for nothing. The book’s design seeks to reflect the coexistence of richness and austerity, elegance and economy, boldness and restraint, and modernity and timelessness found in Penn’s exquisite photographs.

Master prints from a master. This book is dead elegant, understated and an apt gallery for Penn’s work. It exemplifies the marriage of content, materials, design and production, all that those of us who design and produce books strive to achieve. It’s all here in one, effortless-looking package.