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Fabiano Dalmácio's The Book That Grew Grazing Guide presents an extraordinary sculptural object photographed against an absolute black void, commanding attention through its remarkable fusion of…

The Book That Grew Grazing Guide by Fabiano Dalmacio is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2021 Platinum A' Design Award in Fine Arts and Art Installation Design Competition Category.


PlatinumFine Art· 2021

The Book That Grew Grazing Guide

by Fabiano Dalmacio

Client: Rothco, part of Accenture Interactive

Platinum A' Design Award Winner in Fine Art Category

322,102

Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #122969

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The Design

About The Book That Grew Grazing Guide

The Book That Grew is a grazing guide made for farmers in Ireland. The book presents ten lessons and ten pieces of practical advice intended to improve sustainability and profitability. The ten steps guide farmers toward ten rotations of grass grazing each year and a yield of ten tons of grass per hectare. Each page, word and diagram was shaped by living grass roots, guided along channels over a growth period of several weeks. Complex farming processes are explained through bespoke symbols, and a fold-out page carries the symbol key.

The Recognition

About the Platinum A' Design Award

The Book That Grew Grazing Guide is a Platinum A' Design Award winner, an extremely prestigious recognition granted to truly exceptional, elegant, and magnificent designs. Platinum winners are marvels of creation, testaments to the limits of intellectual creativity, and demonstrate the unmatched professionalism and genius of their designers. These designs are expected to be the most renowned works that define the aesthetics of an era, contribute to the well-being of society, and push the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. The Book That Grew Grazing Guide exhibits a transcendent level of excellence and unequivocally makes the world a better place with its advantageous and worthwhile characteristics. The Book That Grew Grazing Guide is a Platinum A' Design Award-winning work that triggers desires, inspires, excites, delights, and sparks great joy.

Where to Get It

Award-Winning Creative Art Direction

We transform brands through innovative visual storytelling and sustainable design thinking. With expertise in print, digital, and experimental media, we create campaigns that win hearts, minds, and international awards. From concept to execution, we deliver creative solutions that drive real business results.

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Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties
This one-of-a-kind book contains 10 tangible lessons and 10 pieces of practical advice designed to help maximize sustainability and increase profitability. These 10 steps enable farmers to achieve a 'perfect' 10 rotations of grass grazing per year, and produce 10 tons of grass per hectare - a truly powerful number that will massively improve the sustainability of even the most efficient farm.
Dimensions & Packaging
Book closed: A3 - 29.7 x 42cm
Book open: A2 - 59.4 x 42cm
Tags
book, design, Ireland, grass, farming, bank
Production Technology
We used grass to grow a book. This is a genuine world first - with each page, each word, and each diagram shaped by real grass roots as they grew. Manipulated by a unique fusion of gardening and meticulous craft, the 'printing process' was fulfilled by nature itself - shaping the grass roots into legible symbols over a growth period of several weeks.
Design Challenge
This is a book that has completely come from grass itself. Designing for a root-based 'printing process' presented many challenges unique to this project. Every element from words to symbols to borders had to be inter-connected by channels for the roots to navigate. Complex farming processes were compressed into a bite-sized visual language of bespoke symbols, with the design of each individual glyph informed by the action or process it represented. A unique fold-out page allowed the reader quickly reference the symbol key while reading.
Research
The first step was to analyse the latest government reports and agricultural studies to identify the key areas of inefficiency in farming. Using the latest research and data on sustainability we isolated the 10 most effective methods of reducing emissions relevant to our target audience of Irish farmers. The application of each step was assigned a specific percentage of carbon savings, giving clear targets for farmers to reach, and a clear result that would translate into profitability through reaching these targets.
Inspiration
The roots of Ireland's economy are in agriculture, but if farming is to survive, it must become more sustainable. AIB, Ireland's largest bank for farmers, in partnership with Teagasc - the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority - wanted to enable farmers to maximize sustainability, by changing how they see our greatest resource: grass.
Project Duration
From October 2018 to May 2019, in Dublin and Amsterdam.
Operation Flow
Not only does this book lay out a practical plan of action, it symbolises the power of our natural resources. When grass is managed correctly, it can work wonders.
Team Members
Agency: Rothco, part of Accenture Interactive
Client: AIB
Executive Creative Director: Alan Kelly
Creative Director: Ray Swan
Art Director: Fabiano Dalmácio
Copywriter: Rob Maguire
Design Director: Shane O'Riordan
Designer: Diogo Dias
Business Director: Jimi McGrath
Account Director: Alan McQuaid
Project Manager: Irene Sharkey
Executive Producer: Alan Byrnes
Artist: Diana Scherer
Book Designer: Jamie Murphy
Publisher: The Salvage Press
Image Credits
Photographer: Diana Scherer
Filmmaker: Jake Viramontez

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