The Best Dutch Book Designs 2024 Exhibition Opens at Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam
The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam is set to host "The Best Dutch Book Designs 2024" exhibition, an annual showcase celebrating exceptional book design. Starting November 8, this new edition will display a curated selection of publications from the previous year, highlighting excellence in content, graphic design, lithography, typography, material choices, printing, and binding.
This yearly event is a collaborative effort between the Stedelijk Museum and the Stichting De Best Verzorgde Boeken. The selection process involves two distinct juries: a professional panel comprising experts in book design, printing, and publishing, and a student jury drawn from leading graphic design programs across the Netherlands. For the 2024 selection, 269 books were submitted, resulting in 30 titles chosen by the professional jury and 32 by the student jury, with thirteen books appearing on both esteemed lists.
Exploring Contemporary Book Design Trends
Visitors to the exhibition will observe both ongoing design trends and emerging developments in the world of contemporary book making. Popular elements like Swiss bindings and "fishbone" bindings continue to be prominent. Conversely, techniques such as RISO printing and foil stamping on covers appear to be less frequently used. Lasting preferences include the application of silver ink, exposed spines, and the use of translucent paper.
A noticeable trend is the frequent incorporation of brown fibrous paper, possibly due to its association with environmentally conscious design. Interestingly, a counter-trend embraces the use of plastic sleeves. Designers are also experimenting extensively with extended dust jackets, utilizing the inner surface for additional content. A recurring, though sometimes debated, intervention is the use of narrowed pages. The exhibition also pays significant attention to books that lie open well and feature visually engaging book edges, often used to aid navigation.
To present this diverse collection, designer Paul Kuipers developed a modular furniture concept. This adaptable system is crafted to accommodate the wide variety of publications and the exhibition space itself. The furniture's versatile surface allows books to be displayed in numerous ways, ensuring each work, regardless of its size, form, or presentation method, finds an appropriate spot within the installation, supporting the content without drawing undue attention. Most of the selected works fall within the categories of art, photography, and architecture, with 27 titles represented.
Further details regarding the selected books can be found on the website of Stichting De Best Verzorgde Boeken.
For those eager to discover more cultural experiences in the city, Musemap (musemap.art) offers a comprehensive guide. You can browse museums like the Stedelijk or explore other unique spots across Amsterdam on our interactive map.
