Type: Book Design

A little ramble.

So much of my design life has been the domain of books, that I forget it as a genre of typography sometimes. I'm mostly an image-based designer, and they typically send folks like us to the art department to design the covers, which are usually photographic or illustrative in nature. I began my apprenticeship as a production assistant to learn the ropes, and in the process of doing so, I learned what each and every department does, because that was my job, and that's exactly what my boss (and first professional mentor) wanted, because we discussed it at my hiring. 

Pieces of string.

I spent my time at night teaching myself the requisite software that I did not learn to design with at school. I had one extremely basic computer class for illustration, a touch of Photoshop onscreen in a photo journalism class, and that was it. In fact, we started a petition for desktop publishing classes that so threatened the old guard teachers in the ivory tower, my mentor there told me some profs put us on a blacklist. None of them are working art directors or designers today ;)

BAM!

One of the first designers I met at St. Martin's Press many moons ago is the incredible Judy Abbate. She worked in the Design department as an interior designer. In books, that doesn't mean carpets and drapes; that means the designers who estimate the manuscript's page count, design the style guides and chapter headings, and work with the typesetters. It's an art of its' own. Fortunately for me, Judy's also an illustrator, and she knew the big distance that existed between my degree and the working world. She gave me use of her work computer for me to learn on after hours at night, when the other designers left for the day, so I did. I bought myself a set of Peachpit Press books (http://www.peachpit.com/), and I taught myself the reigning creative suite trilogy of the times, QuarkXpress, Illustrator, and Photoshop.

Kara Walker.

Because of my imaging skills as a photo minor in school (I was a teaching assistant and darkroom technician for b&w photography), I went upstairs to the Art department, to learn about book cover design. That's where types like us go because we have the same skills as the freelancers we hire, so it's essential we speak their language. My first two interviews were with photographers, both women of world renown; Rosalind Solomon and Annie Lebowitz, and both were for darkroom assistants. I didn't get those jobs, because I had a portfolio with a defined style and my own P.O.V., but I did get my third interview in publishing. A friend of a friend from high school worked in PR at SMP. He walked me to meet my first boss after I went through HR, and said "Hire her!". I was the only person in my graduating class with a job at our commencement ceremony, because I graduated mid-session before my classmates, because I tore through my studio requirements after leaving my SUNY school so I could leave school to work. I worked three jobs while at RISD (the third was making pizza), and my father only paid for a year and a half worth of schooling for our educations, which was a phenomenal bargain for a guy with four kids. There was one scholarship available from Hallmark Cards for Illustration Majors at the time (for about $1000/semester), and my married friend who'd already worked as a graphic designer prior to RISD got it.

Q&A a day.

It's funny, but after my springtime trip to MoMa, I found myself more excited in the bookstore than I did with the work on the walls, yet another indication to me of the solidity of my abilities, how deeply rooted they are to who I am. Books are not just what I "do" for a living, they are parts of me: I read, I write, I illustrate, I photograph, I design, I publish, I edit, and I'm hungry for more (nod to the Tony Bourdain "No Reservations" intro). It's our vocation. Looking back, I see I captured one of Judy's books on the tables at the NY Public Library, Q&A a day, and as always with her work, it stood out for perfectly balanced classicism that's never dull. That's the mastery of it, and that's what keeps us coming back for more. Stay strong, Judy. This one's for you: http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/big-surgery-for-my-love/71246.

By Judith Stagnito Abbate.