Penguin Random House New Zealand
Award for Best Illustrated Book 2018
Finalist
Designer: Aaron Beehre
Title: New China Eyewitness: Roger Duff, Rewi Alley and the art of museum diplomacy
Publisher: Canterbury University Press
Format: 240 x 173mm, 176pp. Hardback with jacket including a diary section printed on a tinted uncoated stock set in both English and Chinese and illustrated with photos from Duff’s original diary. The warm uncoated reproduction of the type and photographs speaks to the nostalgia of the publication. The plate section, illustrating objects collected by Roger Duff, is presented on clean white coated paper and sits in contrast to the rawness of the diary entries. The cover is folded in half and represents the bilingual nature of the book. The use of red overlay, gold foiling and gloss lamination against the matt laminated black and white photography alludes to the meeting of two worlds evidenced in Duff’s diary.
Typography: Goudy, Anaheim Gothic, Courier, Songti, SimSun, SimHei. The diaries are set in courier (English) and STKaiti (Chinese)
Judges’ Comments: As judges we were all unanimous in our decision. As a complete package, this book is exquisite. It’s a fine example of respectful and thoughtful design and production values. The finely-tuned and nuanced attention to detail makes for a striking and high-quality end product. The presentation of text and image is thoughtful and makes this book a pleasure to read. As an object, it looks great and stands out on the shop floor.
