Frank and the Frog Prenteboek by Bence Meszaros

Frank and the Frog Prenteboek by Bence Meszaros is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2022 A' Design Award in Silwer in Grafika-, Illustrasie- en Visuele Kommunikasie-ontwerp Competition Category.

SilwerGrafika· 2022

Frank and the Frog Prenteboek

by Bence Meszaros

Client: Bence Mészáros

A' Design Award in Silwer Winner in Grafika Category

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Colors

The Design

About Frank and the Frog Prenteboek

Frank en die Padda is 'n kinderprenteboek oor verlies en herinnering. Die verhaal volg Frank, 'n jong seuntjie wat een dag wakker word en nie sy ouma kan vind nie. Frank verlaat die huis om na haar te soek en ontmoet 'n padda wat sy vriend en helper word. Aan die einde van die reis sien Frank dat sy ouma op 'n veilige en vreedsame plek is, en hy neem afskeid. Die boek het twaalf geïllustreerde bladsye wat van links na regs vloei, en teenoorstaande bladsye word deur kontras gepaar. Handgemaakte lynwerk en teksture word digitaal saamgestel en gekleur.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award in Silwer

Frank and the Frog Prenteboek is 'n wenner van die A' Design Award in Silwer, 'n buitengewoon prestigieuse erkenning wat toegeken word aan topklas-, pragtige en indrukwekkende ontwerpe. Wenners in Silwer is geweldig briljante en uiters kreatiewe werke wat die uitstaande kundigheid, talent en skerpsinnigheid van hul ontwerpers illustreer. Daar word verwag dat Frank and the Frog Prenteboek 'n wonderlike vertoonstuk is wat merkwaardig professioneel en diepgaande innoverend is. Hierdie ontwerp wat die A' Design Award in Silwer gewen het, is 'n hoogs noemenswaardige, bewonderde uitvinding wat die grense van kuns, wetenskap, ontwerp en tegnologie bevoordeel en uitbrei. Frank and the Frog Prenteboek is 'n wyd beny skepping wat begeertes oproep, positiewe gevoelens bring en verbasing en verwondering wek.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: Frank and the Frog is designed to give an escape world to anybody who needs to find peace after losing a beloved one. The book tells the story of a little kid called Frank, who wakes up one day and can't find his Granny. Frank decides to leave his home to find Granny and bring her home. During his journey, he meets a frog, who becomes his friend and helps him through the adventures. In the end, Frank sees Granny is in a safe and peaceful place; he decides to say goodbye and let her go.
Dimensions & Packaging: Width 300 mm x Depth 15 mm x Height 300 mm
Tags: illustration, picturebook, children, book, bookdesign, childrenbook
Production Technology: Mixed media. Manual linework and textures, digitally composed and colourized.
Design Challenge: The hardest part was, of course, how to bring the topic of death into the picture book in a kid-friendly way. Another thing I had to consider during the development phase was that even though I always spend a lot of time thinking about death, I never had an intimate experience with it. So I wanted to be respectful with this topic.
Research: RESEARCH ABSTRACT**:
A big part of my research was to find the right mentor for Frank.
I was looking into different mythology characters, symbols, characters from my life, etc. When I find frogs, I immediately fall in love with the idea. I think they are visually exciting; frogs are travellers, and they can travel through lands, through the water. In the shaman culture, frogs as totem animals have the power of transformation and travelling between the human world and the spirit realm.
Inspiration: My main goal with this picture book was to tell a story and tackle a topic that is not that common in children's literature. A topic that was hard to understand when I was a kid and had me confused for a long time. The subject of death.
I am lucky to have all four of my grandparents alive and know them, but this is a rare phenomenon in my environment. Many people lose their grandparents during their childhood. The base idea comes from my childhood: I was always (and still am) scared of what would happen when my grandparent won't be here anymore.
Project Duration: The project started in June 2021 in Helsinki.
Operation Flow: This picturebook has 12 fully illustrated pages. All the pages have a left-to-right flow, leading the eyes of the reader to the next page. The spreadsheets next to each other are designed to pair up based on different contrasts: e.g., on one page, when the composition is complex, then on the next page, the layout is minimal, or when Franks is high up in the sky, on the next page he goes deep under the ocean.
Patents: Copyright 2022 by Bence Mészáros
Written by Barnabás Csukás, based on an original story by Bence Mészáros
Team Members: Designer, Illustrator: Bence Mészáros
Writer: Barnabás Csukás
Image Credits: Creator Bence Mészáros, Frank and the Frog