The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ by Urszula Giren

The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ by Urszula Giren is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2020 A' Design Award ᱥᱳᱱᱟ ᱯᱩᱨᱚᱥᱠᱟᱨ in ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ Competition Category.

ᱥᱳᱱᱟᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ· 2020

The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ

by Urszula Giren

Client: Urszula Gireń

A' Design Award ᱥᱳᱱᱟ ᱯᱩᱨᱚᱥᱠᱟᱨ Winner in ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ Category

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The Design

About The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ

The Birth of a Book (ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱨᱮᱭᱟᱜ ᱡᱟᱱᱟᱢ) ᱫᱚ ᱑᱖ ᱟᱜ ᱥᱟᱭᱥᱟᱞ ᱨᱮᱱᱟᱜ ᱯᱚᱞᱟᱸᱰ ᱨᱮ ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱰᱤᱡᱟᱭᱤᱱ ᱵᱟᱵᱚᱛ ᱛᱮ ᱢᱤᱫ ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟᱠᱟᱱ ᱯᱨᱚᱠᱟᱥᱚᱱ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ᱾ ᱱᱚᱶᱟ ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱨᱮ ᱢᱟᱨᱮ ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ ᱠᱚ ᱥᱟᱹᱨᱤ ᱢᱟᱯ ᱛᱮ ᱩᱫᱩᱜ ᱦᱩᱭᱩᱜ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ, ᱚᱱᱟᱛᱮ ᱯᱟᱲᱦᱟᱣᱤᱭᱟᱹ ᱠᱚ ᱢᱩᱞ ᱯᱷᱚᱨᱢᱮᱴ ᱠᱚ ᱧᱮᱞ ᱫᱟᱲᱮᱭᱟᱜᱼᱟ᱾ ᱰᱚᱥᱴ ᱡᱮᱠᱮᱴ ᱨᱮ ᱢᱟᱨᱮ ᱚᱠᱴᱮᱵᱷᱚ ᱯᱷᱚᱨᱢᱮᱴ ᱨᱮ ᱵᱮᱵᱷᱟᱨᱟᱜ ᱤᱢᱯᱚᱡᱤᱥᱚᱱ ᱦᱚᱨᱟ ᱩᱫᱩᱜᱟᱜᱼᱟ᱾ ᱢᱤᱫ ᱨᱤᱵᱚᱱ ᱵᱩᱠᱢᱟᱨᱠ ᱛᱮ ᱯᱷᱚᱞᱤᱭᱚ, ᱠᱣᱟᱨᱴᱚ ᱟᱨ ᱚᱠᱴᱮᱵᱷᱚ ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱠᱚᱣᱟᱜ ᱩᱥᱩᱞ ᱪᱤᱱᱦᱟᱹ ᱦᱩᱭᱩᱜᱼᱟ᱾ ᱴᱟᱭᱴᱚᱞ ᱥᱟᱦᱴᱟ ᱨᱮᱱᱟᱜ ᱣᱩᱰᱠᱚᱴ ᱠᱚ ᱨᱚᱝ ᱩᱞᱴᱟᱹ ᱛᱮ ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ ᱦᱩᱭ ᱟᱠᱟᱱᱟ, ᱚᱠᱟ ᱫᱚ ᱦᱮᱸᱫᱮ ᱥᱭᱟᱦᱤ ᱛᱮ ᱫᱷᱟᱠᱟᱣᱟᱠᱟᱱ ᱢᱮᱴᱨᱤᱠᱥ ᱠᱚ ᱩᱭᱦᱟᱹᱨ ᱚᱪᱚᱭᱮᱫᱼᱟ᱾ ᱱᱚᱶᱟ ᱨᱮᱱᱟᱜ ᱯᱷᱚᱨᱢᱮᱴ ᱫᱚ ᱒᱕᱖ x ᱓᱒᱐ ᱢᱤᱞᱤᱢᱤᱴᱚᱨ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ, ᱚᱱᱟ ᱨᱮ ᱕᱖᱐ ᱥᱟᱦᱴᱟ ᱟᱨ ᱞᱟᱛᱷᱟᱛᱤ ᱑᱒᱐᱐ ᱪᱤᱛᱟᱹᱨ ᱢᱮᱱᱟᱜᱼᱟ᱾ ᱱᱚᱶᱟ ᱨᱮᱱᱟᱜ ᱩᱫᱮᱥ ᱫᱚ ᱨᱮᱱᱮᱥᱟᱸᱥ ᱚᱠᱛᱚ ᱨᱮᱱᱟᱜ ᱪᱷᱟᱯᱟ ᱦᱚᱨᱟ ᱠᱚ ᱟᱭᱢᱟ ᱯᱟᱲᱦᱟᱣᱤᱭᱟᱹ ᱠᱚ ᱴᱷᱮᱱ ᱵᱩᱡᱷᱟᱹᱣ ᱮᱢ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ᱾

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award ᱥᱳᱱᱟ ᱯᱩᱨᱚᱥᱠᱟᱨ

The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱫᱚ A' Design Award ᱥᱳᱱᱟ ᱯᱩᱨᱚᱥᱠᱟᱨ ᱧᱟᱢ ᱟᱠᱟᱱᱟ, ᱱᱚᱶᱟ ᱫᱚ ᱵᱷᱟᱞᱟᱭ ᱛᱮ ᱵᱷᱟᱞᱟᱭ ᱟᱨ ᱥᱩᱱᱫᱚᱨ ᱰᱤᱡᱟᱭᱤᱱ ᱠᱚ ᱞᱟᱹᱜᱤᱫ ᱮᱢ ᱟᱠᱟᱱ ᱥᱚᱢᱟᱱ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ᱾ ᱱᱚᱶᱟ ᱠᱚ ᱫᱚ ᱰᱤᱡᱟᱭᱤᱱᱟᱨ ᱠᱚ ᱨᱮᱭᱟᱜ ᱵᱷᱟᱵᱱᱟ ᱟᱨ ᱵᱷᱟᱞᱟᱭ ᱠᱟᱢᱤ ᱡᱷᱟᱞᱠᱟᱣ ᱠᱚ᱾ The Birth of a Book ᱯᱩᱛᱷᱤ ᱫᱚ ᱠᱚᱞᱟ, ᱣᱤᱜᱭᱟᱱ, ᱰᱤᱡᱟᱭᱤᱱ ᱟᱨ ᱴᱮᱠᱱᱚᱞᱚᱡᱤ ᱨᱮᱭᱟᱜ ᱥᱤᱢᱟ ᱵᱟᱲᱦᱟᱣ ᱟᱨ ᱫᱩᱱᱤᱭᱟ ᱵᱷᱟᱞᱟᱭ ᱞᱟᱹᱜᱤᱫ ᱜᱚᱲᱚ ᱮᱢ ᱠᱟᱱᱟ᱾

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: The designed structure of publications presents the old prints in real size and the method of their production in additional elements like a dust jacket which show printing sheet, typographic composition at 1:1 scale. The woodcuts in color inversion on the title pages refer to matrices covered with black ink. The compositions of this pages were plotted on a scheme invented by Villard de Honnecourt, 13th century artist, and refer to the proportions of columns, margins used in the 16th century.
Dimensions & Packaging: Format:
256 x 320 mm in a 1.25 ratio, 560 pages, the page format allowed the calculation of a multi-level grid for the composition of individual elements, including 1200 illustrations.
Tags: renaissance book, first roman typefaces, old prints, typography
Production Technology: The work was digitally printed and a hardback, paper binding, thermo-gluing was used. The covering is made of black beater-dyed paper. There are also a dust jacket reflecting an imposition method for the old octavo book format, as well as a ribbon - bookmark, depicting the folio, quarto and octavo heights. Covering: Geltex Negro Antracita 191 Embossing LS 115 g (beater-dyed paper), silver color - screen printing, binder's board: spine board 2 mm, base case 3 mm, Dust Jacket: Color Style Black Smooth 120 g (beater-dyed paper) silver color - screen printing, Endpaper: Geltex Negro Antracita 191 Embossing LS 130 g (beater-dyed paper), Book-block: Pergraphica Natural Smooth 120 g, CMYK - digital printing, HP Indigo, printing according to fiber direction, PUR glue, Headband: Black, Ribbon bookmark: Black, silver color
Design Challenge: The biggest challenge was complicated structure of the text - a lot of auxiliary and descriptive texts, an unusually large number of various illustrations - 1274. Organizing the appropriate grid required several verifications. I based the project largely on mathematical calculations related to the content of the publication. The divisions and colors used resulted entirely from the content and the assumption of the best possible exposure of illustrations and text. By learning the methodology of 16th-century typographers, you can see frequent references to numbers that have always been present in nature. The search for systematization the surrounding world by the renaissance artists was huge inspiration. Each element in the world has its place and meaning, nothing is accidental, everything is connected with each other and interacts with each other. I also wanted to build a relationship system in the design of my publication, where the smallest part would result from the structure of the whole.
Research: The first part of book contains basic information about printing, introduces the reader to the general principles of Renaissance design. In the second part of the publication, printing in Poland was discussed in more detail. This part was divided into 5 chapters, four of which have been assigned specific cities. The choice of places was justified by the pioneering activity of the printing houses, which opened there, their size, as well as the quality of the publications they produced.
Inspiration: The main inspirations were the general principles of Renaissance design. The first stage of the project included gathering graphic material necessary to conduct research on the old European, Polish books. The study covered individual elements, starting from the materials from which books were created: papers, binding materials, typefaces, ornaments, graphics. Information was also collected on the most well-known Polish and European publishers, typographers and punchcutters.
Project Duration: The project started in May 2017 in Bialystok and finished in February 2019 in Katowice, Poland
Operation Flow: All the elements in the book have been designed to familiarize the reader with the methodology of creating books in the 16th century. Starting from the format of the book showing real formats of old prints, to the dust jacket presenting the printing imposition, or the ribbon indicating the height of old books - folio, quarto, otavo.
Image Credits: Urszula Gireń / 2019