The year was 1617. William Hakewill MP commissioned it to give as a gift to a friend. And it just might be the first mobile library. The Jacobean miniature travelling library consisted of 50 gold-tooled vellum-bound miniature books contained in a wooden case that resembled a large folio. Inside there were three shelves for the books. The inside cover was an illuminated table of contents. The subject matter covered history, poetry, theology and philosophy and included works by Cicero, Virgil, Ovid, Seneca, Horace and Julius Caesar. It was the perfect gift for a reader on the go and must of been a hit for within...
Dick Bruna: A sampling of covers
He is best known for creating Miffy, the world's most famous rabbit. Yes, that's right, the world's most famous rabbit, Not Peter, not Roger... Miffy. He has published over 200 Miffy books to date with almost 90 million sold. The Miffy brand rakes in over $150 million a year. But Miffy is just a slice of the Dick Bruna pie. Bruna is also a titan of Dutch modernist graphic design and has designed and illustrated over 2,000 book covers! You see his father was a publisher and he got to work designing covers and promotional material for the company. Here is a sampling of his amazing...
Haruki Murakami’s Strange Library
Haruki Murakami's surreal library adventure coupled with Chip Kidd's book design makes for a unforgettable 1-2 punch. The book itself is a knockout. The front cover is comprised of two panels that emanate from the rear cover, fold over and are held together by a tab, '107'. Each panel is illustrated on its verso. A large animal on one, a smile on the other. Animal eye illustration on verso of front panel. Note the flip side of the '107' tab at middle Separate the panels, lift and start reading. A young boy visits the public library on his way home from school...
Isabel Barbuzza’s Bookworks
Color Reading Color Reading detail Isabel Barbuzza was born and raised in Argentina and is currently an associate professor at the School of Art and Art History in the University of Iowa. Her interest lies "in the relationships between space, place, objects and materials in contemporary society and how through perception, thought and language we facilitate engaging with the physical world." Her work runs the gamut from artists books to sculpture to installation. Enjoy! Disasters of War based on Goya's "Disaster of War" - love poem blackened out with white numbers indicated disasters of war since Goya's time. The binding...
Small is Beautiful: The Work of L. Delaney
A dollhouse without books is like a miniature room without windows! Books add life and character to a room! There isn't a miniature scene that a book would not look fantastic in---libraries, studies, attics, bedrooms, living rooms... Her moniker is: Miniatures for the Well-Appointed Dollhouse! L. Delaney has had the doll bug since she was a child. She was always bothered by the combination of inconsistent quality and the high prices of dollhouse accessories then one Christmas she decided to do something about it. With all the scrap material that was accumulating in her room she set out to create some miniatures...