Linda Toigo MPR Web

8/4/2019 Linda Toigo MPR Web

1/55

LINDA TOIGO


2/55

TITLE

Linda Toigo / Graduate Diploma Design for Visual Communication / LCC / 2009


3/55

First English edition

(left) First issue of Stevensons Strange Case of Dr Jekyll

and Mr Hyde, in the original printed paper wrappers and

(right) title page of the cloth edition.


4/55

Engaging the reader through structure, image and

interaction: an experimental book design for STRANGE

CASE OF DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE

1

A contemporary reader coming

for the rst time to Robert Louis

Stevensons Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde may be surprised. Its not

quite what one expects. It is a

fragmented, quietly feverish little

book - a sneaky book. It proceeds

through indirection, doling out sly

hints but leaving, for the most part,

the sordid facts to the imagination.

Dan Chaon,

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde ,p. 127 (Afterword)

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT TITLE


5/55

CONTENTS


6/55

2

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH QUESTION

RESEARCH METHODS

DEVELOPMENT OF THE OUTCOME

CONCLUSION

BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDIXA: SUMMARY OF THE NOVEL

APPENDIX B: LIST OF RESEARCH MATERIAL

3

4

6

9

10

15

16


7/55

INTRODUCTION

AND RESEARCH

QUESTION


8/55

3

Book design is an amazingly complex branch of graphic

design: it is not just a matter of relation between image

and text in the page, but it also requires a deep reection

about the audience. The connection between the book

and the reader is not only visual but it involves the

physical act of holding it, turning and feeling its pages, and

sometimes, as in my case, manipulating them in order to

create a new narrative.

If readers are asked to be deeply engaged with a book,

they will have very high expectations and the aim of this

project is to exceed them. From the rst steps of my

research I have focused my study on nding a way to

stimulate and surprise the audience and to celebrate the

book as a physical object. My work has been supported

by the constant referring to my research question:

Is it possible to communicate the meaning of a text-based

book by using non conventional media and format and by

confounding readers expectations through the use of elements

of surprise and interaction?

In this report I will explain how my project started

and what inspiration I could get from published works,

I will show my early experimentations and how they

have inuenced the nal outcome and I will talk about

the relationship between the content and narrative of

Louis Stevensons novel and the structure of the

book I produced.

If you start second-guessing your

readership, says Kalle Lasn, then

youve lost your passion. If you think

deeply about what readers really

want, they dont necessarily want

the same grid of familiar ity; what

they really want is to be surprised

and delighted and to have an

epiphany from you, something that

knocks them for a loop. They want

their comfort level broken rather

than enhanced.

Laurel Saville

100 Habits of SuccessfulPublication Designers, p. 40

INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH QUESTIONLinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT


9/55

RESEARCH

METHODS/1


10/55

Invitation card, Ryosuke Uehara and Akiko Sekimoto

Old paper, envelopes, industrial metallic articles, old maps

are used to communicate a special atmosphere

from: Ideas Unbound , p. 080


11/55

In and Out, Jonathan Ellery

Conceptual book that uses the tactile qualities of paper

and cloth, color and basic shapes

from: Fu lly Booked, p.53


12/55

Tiling Books, Pete Sampson

Nine books in three different sizes divided in ve sections;

one image is spread over each of these parts.

The books only make sense when they are juxtaposed

together so that the whole image is clearly displayed.

from: Fully Booked , p. 55


13/55

Der Seltsame Fall Dr. Jekyll und Mr. Hyde,

Jung+Wenig

The volume is full of innovative tricks, elements of

interaction, typographical experimentation and a large

amount of illustrations that come from different sources

such as ea markets and medical studies

from: Fully Booked, p. 71


14/55

RESEARCH METHODSLinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

Secondary research

I concentrated my research in book production, image

and narrative, experimentation in typography and the

relation of the objects with the white space in the page.

As I was leading my investigation from book to book

I became aware of the increasing number of methods

the designers have used to differentiate their products;

this has motivated me to nd my own way through a

strong use of primary research together with specic

inspirations from published ideas.

I have also developed my study in the eld of artist

books and independent publications where the book

is created as an artwork and its materiality is highly

considered. Most artists books have less boundaries as

they do not suffer the constrains of large productions

budget and time consuming issues: the production

process constitutes a strong part of those works, and I

wanted to have the same priority for my own design.

I thought it was useful to me to examine previous

experimental publications about Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde such as Jung+Wenigs project: this 192-page

book is extremely inspirational in its extensive use of

iconographical stimulation and format variation and for

the research on interaction with the reader.

4

Successful artists books utilize

the whole design and production

process to reinforce the message

of the subject matter. Shapes, folds,

text patterns and materials canbe used to nudge the viewer in the

direction of the artists message,

producing an unied coherent

statement from the outset.

Sarah Bodman

Creating Artists Books, p. 8


15/55

RESEARCH

METHODS/2


16/55

Analysis of the novel

A page from my sketchbook where I visualise the

structure of Jekylls house described in Luckhursts essay:

The town house on the respectable square backs onto

an enclosed courtyard that contains an outbuilding:

Denmans old laboratory. Within this there is the cabinet

where Jekyll conducts his fateful experiments. Lanyon is

given permission to break through these doors: he has the

further task of breaking open a locked drawer in his desk

to bring away Jekylls chemicals. Utterson and Poole use

an axe to break down the cabinet, only to nd a body and

sealed enclosures that contain the nal truth.

from: Introduction to Strange Case

of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, p. xiii


17/55

Analysis of the novel

My graphic analysis of the relation between Jekyll and

Hyde (left) and Nabokovs visualisation (right)

from: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, p. 11


18/55

Primary research

My experiments of screen printed typography

on different kinds of support: this experience

allowed me to use condently this printing

technique to produce the nal version of the cover.


19/55

Primary research

In this case I wanted to analyse a book starting from

its volumetric qualities and discarding the content: a

lowercase letter has been cut from all the pages in

order to create a readable void inside the book.


20/55

Primary research

An experimental booklet I created considering every

envelope as a page: black and white photocopy-style

printed images occupy the space of the envelope as

it was a at sheet, creating three-dimensional effect

when the envelopes are opened.


21/55

Primary research

In this book I wanted to lead a reection about the

relation between the pages and the dynamics created by

images and shapes: the cutouts allow to preview a part

of the following page. The images get their meaning from

the relationship with the other elements; as those visual

connections change, they modify their signicance.


22/55

1 A summary of the novel can be found

at the end of this report (APPENDIX A)

2 For a detailed analysis of the themes

of the novel, see SKETCHBOOK 4

RESEARCH METHODSLinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

Secondary research: focus on the novel

I chose Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde mostly for

two reasons: the length of the novel was ideal for my aim

and I knew the book was full of hidden meanings and

symbolism that would have helped me i n nding strong

ideas for my project1.

A further investigation has been necessary after reading

the novel a few times and Ive found Roger Luckhursts

introduction to Oxford Worlds Classic edition of the

novel particularly brilliant for his way of unfolding the

main themes2.

Ive also developed a reection about the relation

between Dr. Jekyll and his double, trying to visualise

the progressive changes and reactions in a graphic way.

It has been an interesting surprise to nd out thatthe same method has been used by Nabokov in his

introduction to Signet Classic edition.

Primary research

I have lead my experimentations in two directions: I

have created some hand-made publications taking the

inspiration from artists books examples; some of my

ndings have been developed in the nal outcome.

At the same time I invested some time in improving my

screen printing skills, in particular developing the relation

between letterforms and different kinds of paper.

The structure is the most

ingeniously designed element of the

book. It tells the story backwards,

so that we work our way towards

the confession of Dr. Jekyll, which

is revealed last. [...] The narrative

moves from the outer edges of

the secret to its nal revelation. It

unfolds like a sequence of Russian

dolls nested inside each other.

Roger Luckhurst,

Introduction to Strange Case of

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, p. xiii

5


23/55

DEVELOPMENT OF

THE OUTCOME/1


24/55

First version

The rst idea was based on a strict concatenation of the

narratives: a 100% cotton thick paper was french folded

around a black sugar paper that, once opened, revealed a

brown envelope. The rst experimentation on the images

was based on computer-based textures and lters.


25/55

Final version: rst and second narrative

The rst two narratives are the parts in the novel that

explore the social behavior and relationship between

the characters from two points of view.

One is the narration about the accepted, pacic life of

rich middle-aged professionals, the other is the

description of their feelings and reactions to the sudden

unwanted presence of Hyde in their normality. The

difference between the two can be felt by the diverse

typographic grids: one is harmonically centered in the

page, the other is moved dramatically towards the edge of

the page in order to convey a claustrophobic feeling.

The typeface I used is Hoeer text, a contemporary

font inspired by classics such as Garamond and Janson.

rst narrative

second narrative

rst narrative


26/55

Final version: third narrative

The facts that happen in the story and that are narrated

with a journalistic style have been edited within a

square grid box using Courier font to recall the idea

of a newspaper. Before getting to use the right paper, I

tried different solutions such as newsprint and wrapping

paper. The effect of the printed text on them was very

interesting but I had to deal with unsolvable technical

problems that made me research for alternative materials.

In fact thin supports such as n ewsprint can only be used

with processes, such as offset litho or screen printing, that

were not suitable for my project.

third narrative


27/55

Final version: fourth narrative

Black, dark grey and mirror paper are used for this

narrative: the text is centered in the page and the font is

the same as the rst two narratives as I didnt want the

reader to be distracted by too many changes. The laser

print creates a slightly shiny text that can be read only if

the book is moved towards the light.

fourth narrative


28/55

Narratives

After a deep investigation into the meanings hidden in

the novel, at the stage of starting the design of the book

I was sure the content had a leading role in my decisions.

I edited the text by selecting the parts that mostly

conveyed three different atmospheres I was interested in

juxtaposing: the late-Victorian society, the evil behavior

of Hyde and the relation between the two personalities.

I found it very difcult to select some text and to discard

the rest, and after many versions I realised that I would

have felt my work as incomplete if I didnt include all the

original text.

My editing work has been then a matter of dividing

the text into six d ifferent narratives3 in relation to the

style and the content of the sentences. Every narrativehas been assigned a grid and the diversity of the paper

has been used to increase and develop the differences

between them: for instance, I have printed the text

related to the rst two narratives on a thin cream-white

french folded paper to give this part a traditional feeling;

the factual events (third narrative) are reported on a

parchment paper with the aim of recalling the idea of

a newspaper; the fourth narrative is the one related

to Mr. Hyde, his evil side, the horried reactions.

As I wanted this part to be obscure and disturbing,

I laser-printed black text on black paper in order to

make readability be inuenced by the angle of view.

6

3These reections can be found in the

second half of SKETCHBOOK 7

DEVELOPMENT OF THE OUTCOMELinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

The average readers may not

be consciously aware of design in

books, but they cant escape being

affected by visual elements that

establish character and mood.

Scientic studies conrm the power

of subconscious impressions to

modify states of mind or attitudes.

[...] Any decision affecting the

physical aspect of the book can

have expressive value. Every

physical attribute contributes to the

total effect and helps establish its

character and atmosphere.

Marshall Lee,Bookmaking, p. 307


29/55

DEVELOPMENT OF

THE OUTCOME/2


30/55

Final version: fth narrative

Behind the last page the reader will nd an envelope

where the ninth chapter is kept. The title of the chapter

has been ink-jet printed directly on the envelope.


31/55

Final version: sixth narrative

The inner envelopes can just be seen through the slightly

transparent pages of the book or can be observed from

the edges unless the pages are ripped. Every envelope

keeps a booklet that can be read and put aside by the

others to create an image.


32/55

Final version: sixth narrative

The nal image is surprisingly disturbing: the two

elegant and proud looking young men turn out

to be pony Siamese twins.


33/55

Envelopes

From this selection of my experimentation with

print and envelopes can be seen the variety of

materials and shapes I investigated before getting

to the nal choice: two different sizes of the same

kind of watermarked cream envelope.


34/55

7


Structure and Interaction: fth and sixth narratives

The linearity of the narration continues until the eighth

chapter, after which the conventions are overtaken.

In the introduction to the book I have asked the reader

to act as a character and to open an envelope where

the ninth chapter is kept.

The interaction becomes stronger at the end of the

novel, where the truth is revealed: I have divided the

tenth chapter in small booklets that can be reached only

if the reader decides to rip the pages.

I wanted this choice to require a physical action and a

psychological involvement as it happens for Dr. Lanyon

in the previous chapter.

The small fragments, if juxtaposed in their order, create

a image that can be really understood only when the lastelement is put in place.

Envelopes

The theme of the envelopes, of discovering the truth

step by step by opening them, is a narrative element used

by Stevenson to engage his readers. Thats why I decided

to use them largely in my book, also encouraged by some

enthusiastic feedback about my early experimentations

of print on envelopes.

Before getting to the right ones, I tried many kind

of sizes, styles and materials keeping the historic

consistency as the rst priority.


35/55

DEVELOPMENT OF

THE OUTCOME/3


36/55

Images on parchment paper

This paper has a dark yellow shade that reminds of some

old pictures: black and white images get a special nostalgic

feeling when printed on this material.

Some pictures have been printed on bigger spreads that

give a third dimension to the book.


37/55

Images on black paper

The print on black paper enhances the graphic quality

of this engraving. The two stretching forces represented

in the image are unconsciously reproduced by the

reader in the act of opening the spread.


38/55

Photocopy

A small, low-resolution image such as this one can get

a new graphic value thanks to a photocopy enlargement.


39/55

Cover: previous idea

An experiment during my early reections about

the cover of my book employs three envelopes

and their volumetric qualities.


40/55

Front and back covers

The title can only be understood through a rational

association: I wanted it to be clear from the rst sight

that this book will ask the reader a big involvement.


41/55

Images

The choice of the images was crucial: I wanted them to

be strongly consistent with the theme and the historical

moment in which the novel takes place: I found a rich

resource of medical images and pictures from the

late Victorian period in the Wellcome Library, a huge

collection created with the aim of promoting the culture

and history of medicine. There I looked for images of

19th-century clinical treatments, body malfunctions,

disturbing diseases that I used throughout the book

together with pictures of pacic social life in order to

create a continue contrasting dialogue.

Some pictures have been enlarged with a photocopy

machine to emphasize their texture whilst images such

as engravings and sketches have been digitally zoomed tokeep their graphic qualities.

Texture, kind of cropping, style of image and paper have

all been used to convey a specic feeling to the reader.

Cover

After some experiments with images, die cuts, cloth,

pop-up envelopes I decided to focus on the title and to

discard all other elements. I chose Akzidenz, a strong

sans-serif font that used in uppercase would have lled

perfectly the surface of my cover; the black and white

contrast anticipates the juxtaposition of the inner pages.

8



42/55

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSIONL d T MAJOR PROJECT REPORT


43/55

9

When I started my project, my idea of the audience was

very clear4, but during the process I asked some people

to ick through the dummies and after observing their

reactions I had to reconsider my readership.

I decided not to expect anymore a previous knowledge

of the novel or a high literature background from my

audience as I understood that the involvement in the

story was much more emotional than purely rational.

This change of perspective made me focus stronger in

the tactile qualities, the visual impact and the physical

engagement that can be evaluated in the nal outcome.

It has been a strong involving design experience, where I

learnt to give production processes as much importance

as editing and typesetting.

It is a research that I want to develop further togetherwith a necessary deepening on professional editing and

book production issues.

CONCLUSIONLinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

4

This is what I wrote about theaudience in my proposal, 4 month ago:

Whatever the nal piece will be , I

have a clear idea about the audience

of my project; I would like to investigate

how adult people who are used toread and are keen on literature would

react to innovative and unconventional

publications. The reader would be

an adult person with a degree level

education, open to originality, intrigued

by unconventional publications and

with an economical status that would

allow him or her to afford the price

of a design book.


44/55

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Linda T i MAJOR PROJECT REPORT BIBLIOGRAPHY


45/55

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

10

BOOKMAKING

100 Habits of Successful Publication Designers : Insider Secrets for Working Smart and

Staying Creative

Laurel Saville / Beverly, Mass. : Rockport Publishers, 2008

Anatomy of Design : Uncovering the Inuences and Inspirations in Modern Graphic Design

Steven Heller and Mirko Ili / Gloucester, Mass. : Rockport, 2007

Book-Art: Innovation in Book Design

Charlotte Rivers / RotoVision, 2007

Bookmaking: Editing, Design, Production

Marshall Lee / New York : Norton, 2004

Creating Artists Books

Sarah Bodman / London : A&C Black, 2005

Fully Booked : Cover Art & Design for Books

Robert Klanten & Matthias Hbner / Berlin : Gestalten, 2008

Ideas Unbound : Unique Ideas Uniquely Expressed

Tokyo : P.I.E., 2003

Paperwork : the Potential of Paper in Graphic Design

written by Nancy Williams; designed by Williams and Phoa / London : Phaidon, 1993

BIBLIOGRAPHY

LindaToigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT BIBLIOGRAPHY


46/55

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT BIBLIOGRAPHY

Structure of the Visual Book

Keith A. Smith / Rochester, NY : Keith Smith Books, 2003

Text in the Book Format

Keith A. Smith / Fairport, NY : Sigma Foundation, 1989

When Will the Book Be Done?

edited by Steven Clay; preface by Charles Bernstein / New York : Granary Books, 2001

IMAGE SOURCES(numbers in brackets refer to the main images, reproduced at page 14; lettere indicates the images

printed on the envelopes)

100 Years in Pictures: a Panorama of History in the Making

D. C. Somervell / London: Odham Press, 1951 (4, 6, 10)

Brought to Light: Photography and the Invisible, 1840-1900

Corey Keller / San Francisco: San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 2008 (22, e)

Dumbbells Ear Caps and Hair Restorers: A Shoppers Guide to Gentlemens Foibles -

1800s-1930s.

Jane Furnival / Great Britain: Michael OMara Books Ltd, 1999 (e)

Fools and Mad: A History of the Insane in Ireland.

Joseph Robins / Dublin, Ireland : Institute of Public Administration, 1986 (15, 16, e)

11



47/55

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

Freak Show: Presenting Human Oddities for Amusement and Prot

Robert Bogdan / Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988 (1, 19)

Gay Life and Culture: A World History

Robert Aldrich / London: Thames & Hudson, 2006 (7, e)

Histories of the Normal and the Abnormal: Social and Cultural Histories of Norms and

Normativity. Routledge studies in the social history of medicine , 26

Waltraud Ernst / London: Routledge, 2006. (e)

La Imagen del Cuerpo Humano: En la Medicina Moderna (Siglos XVI-XX)

Lpez Piero, Jos M, Felipe Jerez Moliner / Valencia: Fundacion Bancaja, 1999 (17, 20, 21)

Images of Healing: a Portfolio of American Medical & Pharmaceutical Practice in the 18th,

19th, and Early 20th CenturiesAnn Novotny and C. Carter Smith / New York: Macmillan, 1980 (9)

Med: Medical Engravings of the 19th Century

Philemon Stein / New York: Universe Books, 1974 (3, 5 8, 14, 18)

Mr. Punch Among the Doctors

London: Methuen, 1933 (e)

http://medphoto.wellcome.ac.uk (2, 11, 12, 13)

William Nicholson: segno e immagine in unottica vittoriana

Paola Watts / Roma: Edizioni Quasar, 1982 (e)

12

BIBLIOGRAPHY



48/55


ON DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

with an introductory essay by Vladimir Nabokov / New York: Signet Classic, 2003

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Stories

England: Wordsworth Editions Limited, 1994

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Tales

with and introduction by Roger Luckhurst / Oxford University Press, 2006

WEBSITES

www.book-by-its-cover.com

http://bookcoverarchive.com

http://www.victorianlondon.org/

http://www.eolfhs.org.uk/

http://www.ilnpictures.co.uk

13



49/55


14

1

3

2

54

9

86 7

12

10

11

14 1513

17 18

21 2220

16

19


50/55

APPENDIX A:

SUMMARY

OF THE NOVEL

APPENDIXA: SUMMARY OF THE NOVELLinda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT


51/55

g J J

In the next pages I reproduced part of the Introduction

Essay by Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov to Si gnet

Classic Edition ofDr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

The highlighted parts can be read as a short summary

of the novel as I think that a quick overview of the

main narrative would be very useful for understanding

the concept of my project.

15

Linda Toigo MAJOR PROJECT REPORT APPENDIXA: SUMMARY OF THE NOVEL


52/55



53/55



54/55



55/55

Date post:	07-Apr-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	ambresh-pratap-singh
View:	216 times
Download:	0 times

Linda Toigo MPR Web

Documents