Babel on Demand: A Monumental Manifesto / Raw Color: Sophisticated Geometry

Triangles everywhere - the great contribution of Eindhoven-based studio Raw Color for the book project Babel on Demand: a Monumental Manifesto:

You can buy this book at the website of blurb. 

(All images: Raw Color)

Babel on Demand: a Monumental Manifesto is a project by Etienne Hervy and Emilie Lamy who invited several graphic designers to create "a new collection of books with no imposed theme, leaving each guest to determine the intent of their publication".  Blurb is project partner. All the books went on sale on 26 May, the opening day of the 23rd Festival International de L'Affiche et du Graphisme de Chaumont (International Poster and Graphic Design Festival of Chaumont). From September the collection will go on tour and will be enriched each year by five new publications.

Armin Abmeier

Wie viele von euch wahrscheinlich gelesen haben: Armin Abmeier ist am Dienstag gestorben. Und diese Meldung hat mich erst mal sprachlos und tief traurig gemacht. Natürlich wusste ich von seiner Krankheit, aber bei unserem Treffen im Mai wirkte er gefasst und glücklich über die gelungene Vernissage. Ich bin sehr dankbar, dass er sich kurz vor der geplanten Ausstellung so viel Zeit nahm für unser Interview. Die Fragen sendete ich ihm per Mail und er beantwortete eine nach der anderen auf seinem iPad aus dem Krankenhaus, immer mit einem herzlichen Gruß ins Viertel. Bei meinem Besuch in seiner Galerie ums Eck hatte er schon ein Buch von Anke Feuchtenberger für mich bereitgelegt, weil er hier gelesen hatte, dass ich es mir nur ausgeliehen hatte und bald zurückgeben musste. 

(aus: Charakter ist nur Eigensinn)

Es gibt nur wenige Menschen, die beruflich in letzter Konsequenz das tun, was sie wirklich tun wollen. Armin Abmeier machte aus seiner Liebe zur Illustration und seiner Begeisterung für schöne Bücher Tolle Hefte und Tolle Bücher - und das in einer Kompromisslosigkeit hinsichtlich Qualität und Ästhetik, die sehr rar ist in einer Verlagswelt, in der es beim Büchermachen vor allem um Auflagen, Zielgruppen und Vertriebswege geht. Auf meine Frage nach seinen Lieblingsillustratoren, antwortete er: "Meine Lieblingsillustratoren findet man schnell, wenn man sich die 'Tollen Hefte' anschaut." So einfach ist das. Ich danke ihm von Herzen dafür, dass er genau die Bücher gemacht hat, die er machen wollte.
----------------

As probably many of you already know: Armin Abmeier has died on Tuesday. This news made me speechless at first, and deeply sad. I knew about his severe illness, but at our last meeting in May he seemed calm, and very happy about the successful vernissage. I am very thankful to him for taking so much time for our interview shortly before the planned exhibition. I sent him the interview questions via eMail, and he answered them one after another from the hospital using his iPad, always adding affectionate regards to our neighborhood. For my visit of his gallery (which is near my place), he had a book by Anke Feuchtenberger ready for me, because he read in this blog that I had only borrowed my copy of this book and had to return it soon.

There are only a few people who do in their jobs what they really love to do. Armin Abmeier created the Tolle Hefte and Tolle Bücher out of his love for book illustrations and his passion for beautiful books, and he did so with an uncompromisingness regarding his high standards of quality and design which is very rare in the world of publishing which is mainly concerned with things such as number of copies, target groups and marketing channels. When I asked him about his favourite book illustrators, he responded: “They can be found quickly by looking into the ‘Tolle Hefte’”. It’s as simple as that! I thank him wholeheartedly for making exactly those books he wanted to make.

Present & Correct

So many lovely books to shop and discover at Present & Correct! I'm in heaven ...

(Images: Present & Correct Webshop)

Check out their notebooks as well ...




(Images: Present & Correct Webshop)

... and their prints!

(Images: Present & Correct Webshop)

P&C is run by two London-based graphic designers. Their webshop, founded in 2008, is a place for their own design, things they love by other designers and vintage finds. "Paper and office objects which are inspired by homework, the post office and school." They somehow managed to find 1970s paper bags, old game sheets, old fashioned French pins from the 1950s, 1960s travel tip books, wooden magnets, produced in Czechoslovakia in the 70s etc. Please visit their website and head over to their inspiring blog, too! I love, love, love their Books board at Pinterest. There is also a good interview at Muse & Maker with shop founder Neal Whittington.

A booklet from the 60s

On Saturday there is a backyard flea market in our neighborhood where we want to sell some stuff. So today I dig around in my drawers and cupboards and clear them out. Please keep your fingers crossed that it does not rain tomorrow ... 

A Magazine From 1960

Hello everyone and happy Friday! Here it's raining and so I cheer myself up - and hopefully some of you as well - with a few lovely pictures from a fine old journal which I found at the flea market recently. It's from 1960. Today this German interior design magazine is still there (wow!), but looks a little bit different: www.schoener-wohnen.de. Some chairs however are still (or again) the same. And some popular topics never seem to lose their relevance like "More Space in Small Apartments" or "Eating, Living, Working: All in One Room".

(Images: Schöner wohnen, September 1960)

Anouck Boisrobert & Louis Rigaud: tipp tapp

Just visited the new website of this lovely children's book by Paris-based Anouck Boisrobert and Louis Rigaud. Probably you've heard of these successful talented graphic and web designers/illustrators before. They have published with Hélium the fabulous pop-up books Popville (Pop-up City) and Dans la foret du paresseux (Das Faultier im Pop-up-Wald). Their German publisher is Jacoby & Stuart. Please head over to the publisher's websites. There are many more fine books to discover!

Tipp Tapp, originally published in France in 2011 and released this year in Germany, is an innovative project which combines a book with a digital game. Exciting, isn't it? That's how it works: By typing a word on the computer keyboard the associated image appears instantly. If you aren't sure how to spell a word, you can copy the word from the book. You can create your own sceneries and invent as many combinations as your imagination will allow: "A magnificent garden appears, night falls on your house, a whole orchestra plays music… and the connection between word and images becomes easy as pie."

Ok, though the book is for children aged 4 years (and older), a game running with my 4-year-old looks like this: He told me a word from the book to type, then I show him the letters on the keyboard (he doesn't know all the letters yet) and this way we create an animated scenerie together. It's fun! Really, I'm totally in love with the transparent geometric shapes and the funny extras - try typing FLOH or BUMM or SCHNELL (means "fast")! And he is so proud to be able to type all the words and to hold the final picture in his hands (just type PRINT)! I'm sure he will play this game alone very soon. I can only recommend this interactive book: It's such an easy way to create a whole world with words (and to learn how to write them by the way). Brilliant!

 (Anouck Boisrobert/Louis Rigaud: tipp tapp. Mein interaktives Bildwörterbuch, Verlagshaus Jacoby & Stuart, Berlin 2012, € 19,95)

Our first work. He likes it crowded and sunny ;) 

To buy your copy click here or here!

Milk and Paper

Today I like lovely French webshop called Milk and Paper by Estelle Leprince with some of the most beautiful notebooks. She has a great pinboard at pinterest as well.

And there are many more pretty things to discover! The round bag ...  

(All images: Milk and Paper)

Milk and Paper delivers internationally. To deal with the French site, Google translator is doing a good job.