OUGD603 - Guidebook - Initial Ideas

Initial ideas brainstorming for the design of the book explored how elements of the Arts and Crafts movement, as well as the construction history of the town could be utilised. One idea was to play on ideas of asymmetry. It was thought this could be shown either through the layout throughout the book, or through combining photographic imagery with illustrative elements, overlaying these slightly as if they are part of one image in order to represent architectural structures as well as play on these ideas of asymmetry. Continuing to play on elements of the Arts and Crafts movement, the book could (or should) also be hand-bound or include some element of traditional print into the design in order to communicate a sense of "traditional construction and craftsmanship".

Another idea for the layout of the book was to separate the book into different "zones" or sections, representative of Ebenezer Howard's zoning system for the town, whereby industrial areas would be kept separate from residential areas.

Initial ideas for the production design of the book itself look at how the cover and bind could be used to communicate something about the town. For instance, a few of these ideas explore how the idea of the town being surrounded by a "green belt" of land could be used as a way of holding the book together, which could be done through the use of green elastic, or green thread on an exposed bind like coptic stitch.

Another idea for this construction was to keep the book cover fairly minimalistic in itself through the use of pure image and pattern, excluding type, using an arts and crafts style piece of fabric for the cover allowing this movement to be appreciated and shown as part of the overarching history of the town's development. Over this would then be an additional sleeve, which contains the relevant typographic information to slot over the cover.

Additionally, the book could be closed shut through the use of three small magnets, representative of Ebenezer Howard's 3 magnets diagram for his proposal of the town.