History of penguin book covers

The first jackets were designed by the typographer hans schmoller, who created a horizontal grid with an interchangeable palette of dove grey, orange, black and white. May 14, 2014 so you want to hear about the history of book covers, huh. How the paperback novel changed popular literature arts. Buy a cheap copy of the anglosaxons penguin history book. Dubbed diverse editions, the covers included mary shelleys frankenstein as a black man with an afro, dorothy from the wonderful wizard of oz holding a pair of red sneakers instead of ruby slippers and juliet, from romeo and juliet, wearing a hijab. Jan 25, 2018 penguin books editions, designed by angus hyland, 2011. Penguin books was founded in 1935 by allen lane with the purpose of inexpensively producing high quality, but affordable, paperbacks. Founded in 1937, pelican books combined important topics with clear prose to create inexpensive paperbacks for a broad audience.

Oct 19, 2017 penguin were exceptionally successful in setting up a system, not only to produce their paperback novels, but also for the design of their covers. One of the many reasons penguin has been so successful over the years involves its history of creating fantastic book covers. How penguin classics books became design icons books. Turn your home, office, or studio into an art gallery, minus the snooty factor. Best book covers beautiful book covers book cover design book design inspirational books typography poster history books graphic design graphic art a list of 19 examples of beautiful book cover design for graphic and web designers.

Brian morton looks back at the colourful history of penguin. Buy penguin book the secret history by edwardschra as a tshirt, classic tshirt, triblend tshirt, lightweight hoodie, fitted scoop tshirt, fitted vneck tshirt, relaxed fit tshirt, graphic tshirt, chiffon top, sleeveless top, grap. Other british publishers soon realised that design was an important feature for book covers and the demand for highly skilled designers increased doubleday, 2006b. Etsy is the home to thousands of handmade, vintage, and oneofakind products and gifts related to your search. Penguin random house, in partnership with strand book store, is proud to present an exhibit of 100 notable book covers created by a select group of penguin random house creative designers and art directors in a special be my cover exhibit, may 1123 in the rare book room at. Formerly, penguin group was wholly owned by british pearson plc, the global media company which also owned the financial times.

Barnes and noble, penguin release diverse covers of classic. Bearing the hallmark of penguins celebrated design aesthetic, there is a. Penguin used a simple colour scheme, two solid bands of colour sandwiching a band. For penguin classics, he introduced the use of an historic painting, invariably reflecting the themes of the book, to the covers and for penguin modern poets, he commissioned a series of photograms by peter barrett, roger mayne and alan spain between 1962 and 1965. Bell designed a total of 38 book covers for hogarth press, the publishing house woolf founded with her husband. From this article i began to research into the key designers and input which has determined the. This book will fascinate anyone with an interest in books, graphic design, marketing or how to develop a successful business. From aristotle to austen, george orwell to james baldwin the greatest works of fiction, poetry, drama, history and philosophy from the last 5,000 years. Penguin wanted books to be available to as many people as. Oct 30, 2012 penguin book covers through the years in pictures. The project was created by penguin random house, barnes and noble, and advertising company tbwa. Jul 26, 2016 edited by penguin creative director paul buckley, classic penguin.

Meanwhile, the chain of appropriation has come full circle. Filled with stories of the series uk origin, author biographies, short book summaries. Awesome, awesome book about the history and development of penguin books, with specific focus on its evolving design aesthetic. May 31, 2005 awesome, awesome book about the history and development of penguin books, with specific focus on its evolving design aesthetic. I thought penguin covers really took of in 1962 with the use of romek marbers simple cover grid. I cant say since i havent checked every single one use existing art, usually paintings. The official home of penguin books usa, publishers of bestselling fiction, nonfiction, classics, and childrens books. Bearing the hallmark of penguins celebrated design aesthetic, there is a cover to suit everyone in this iconic collection.

In 2011, penguin books uk commissioned these hardcover designs from pentagram designer angus hyland in 2011. So you want to hear about the history of book covers, huh. The history of books is much more technical, boring and gluecentric. At this time, penguin book titles were using a mixture of type size, weight and kerning. Penguin books is now an imprint of the worldwide penguin random house, an emerging conglomerate which was formed in 20 by the merger with american publisher random house. Penguin wanted books to be available to as many people as possible, to let the lesser off share in the wonder that is the written word.

Barnes and noble has pulled a set of reimagined classic book covers featuring diverse protagonists after the project prompted an online backlash, with critics calling it a superficial stunt. Penguin paperback cover designs victoria and albert museum. Penguin were exceptionally successful in setting up a system, not only to produce their paperback novels, but also for the design of their covers. Oct 08, 2019 the penguin classics book covers all the greatest works of fiction, poetry, drama, history, and philosophy in between, this readers companion encompasses 500 authors, 1,200 books, and 4,000 years of world literature, from ancient mesopotamia to world war i. Founder allen lane wrote, we believed in the existence in this country of a vast reading public for intelligent books at a low price, and staked everything on it.

Barnes and noble, penguin release diverse covers of. I pay a lot of attention to book covers, and the penguin classic covers almost always or always. A look at the colorful history of scifi book covers use this link to get a 30 day free trial of vrv premium. Penguin also boast a stellar track record in publishing meaningful titles, but lets be honest. Feb 05, 2020 the decision of which book covers to redesign was made using artificial intelligence to analyze the text from 100 of the most famous titles in western literature, searching the texts to see if. Penguin book covers through the years in pictures books. Independent art hand stretched around super sturdy wood frames. His crime, in rieus eyes, was to replace the spartan jackets with a reproduction of a painting, chosen to reflect the theme of each book. Mar 20, 20 i found a detailed article on the history of penguin paperback book covers. Penguin founded their design ethos of covers in the same fashion as their ethos for the books make them accessible, and make them cheap. Facettis overwhelming command of art history and his an impeccable artistic judgment for selection of a design that would convey the essence of a book revolutionized penguin s covers.

Launched in 1935, penguin books aimed to bring serious softcovers to. Aug 10, 2015 ive always loved penguin books, so heres my take. Thanks to facettis pictorial covers, penguin classics became visual. I found a detailed article on the history of penguin paperback book covers. A brief visual history of virginia woolfs book covers from 1919 to today. His life, work and legacy this tributeastome to tschicholds work puts his work and ideas into an historical perspective, while showcasing his immense talent. Penguin, launched in 1935, was the eras most successful publisher, thanks in. Penguin by design penguin by design offers a fantastic glimpse into the history, process and thought behind the design of penguins offerings. Barnes and noble scraps diverse editions after backlash. Hillary kelly is the digital media editor at the new republic. From this article i began to research into the key designers and input which has determined the aesthetic of penguin book covers in modern day. Find classic covers of your favourite penguin books, or explore contemporary designs created by awardwinning designer coralie bickfordsmith, each featuring a motif or image inspired by the book. The redesign was the work of germano facetti, who had joined penguin as art director in 1961, charged with modernising its visual style.

A brief visual history of virginia woolfs book covers. Nineteen eightyfour by george orwell, with a shepard fairey cover illustration for its 2008 edition. Penguin book covers through the years in pictures books the. The key synthesis element to my publication was the subtle obedience and implementation of the rules. Penguin classics book series list publishing history. The decision of which book covers to redesign was made using artificial intelligence to analyze the text from 100 of the most famous titles in western literature, searching the texts to see if. The grid cover style ran into the seventies with the nonfiction pelicans and nicely still using everybodys favorite type. This survey, an introduction to the history of anglosaxon england looks at political history, and religious, cultural, social, legal and economic themes are woven. A brief history penguin book covers design context. All orders are custom made and most ship worldwide within 24 hours. A brief history penguin book covers penguin books covers.

Well, its an epic story that goes back more than 2,000 years and involves fencing, fighting, torture. The fresh and modern appearance of the penguin book covers was a major contributor to the commercial success. How penguin classics books became design icons the guardian. I decided to use this as my main source of information. Iconic penguin random house book covers on display in. Although the imprint was penguin books the publisher was the bodley head, whose name remained on the front cover for 80 titles until pengin. The history and cover art of science fiction published by penguin books from 1935 to the present day. Joseph conrad the secret agent, designed by the nude on the cover, by toulouselautrec, stares out insolently.

Edited by penguin creative director paul buckley, classic penguin. The book covers of the three earliest penguin classics versions of the confessions of jeanjacques rousseau l33. Even the iconic bands of color framing a white block that have come to define penguin were a stroke of design genius, and are now quite widely fetishized. Penguin random house, in partnership with strand book store, recently presented an exhibit of 100 notable book covers created by a select group of penguin random house creative designers and art directors in a special be my cover exhibit in the rare book room at strand book store in new york city. Culture books features 20 years of penguin essentials.

The imprint was relaunched in april 2014, with the first five titles appearing in may. High quality penguin books inspired canvas prints by independent artists and designers from around the world. The first edition of orlando looked a little different. In honor of black history month, penguin random house and barnes and noble fifth avenue have collaborated on a project to give classic novels what they refer to as diverse covers. Well, its an epic story that goes back more than 2,000 years and involves fencing, fighting, torture, revenge oh wait, thats the princess bride. Read more in penguin by design a cover story, by phil baines. One of penguins strategies was to implement standardised designs for book covers. Cohen, editors, the penguine dictionary of quotations, penguin books cover by alan fletcher. Only paperback editions were published until the king penguin series debuted in 1939, and latterly the pelican history of art. How the paperback novel changed popular literature. Before being discontinued in 1984, pelican books published thousands of accessible, stimulating books covering a wide range of subjects from classical music to molecular biology to architecture. Essentially a journey through 70 years of penguin publishing history through the different cover designs that the company deployed, it also provides an insight into the changing demands of the publishing industry and how covers slowly changed to become marketing. Pages 1045 in the book show eighteen brilliant covers using simple graphics with black, green and red inks. Pelican books was established in 1937 as a nonfiction imprint for lowcost intellectual paperbacks.

A basic horizontal grid divided the front cover into a clearer type hierachy. The secret of penguins enduring paperback covers is all in the rigorous geometry, a wise choice of illustrators and that wonky hand. Detail of book cover design for penguin books, martha and hanwell, book. A vague, illustrated history of modern book design in 19 covers and 710 taco references. From penguin editions to the birth of graphic design, the cover is an open book on the social mores of a country and an era. In retracing her grandmothers footsteps, odonnell not only discovers the remarkable story of a woman caught in the gears of history, but also comes face to face with her familys legacy of neutrality and inaction. Barnes and noble pulls diverse book covers after backlash. Penguin random house, in partnership with strand book store, is proud to present an exhibit of 100 notable book covers created by a select group of penguin random house creative designers and art directors in a special be my cover exhibit, may 1123 in the rare book room at strand book store in new york city. They are often sourced from bridgeman art library or. A brief history of penguin book covers by lizzy gosney issuu.

The cover you have is from the penguin modern classics series, not the penguin classics, and the art work was selected with that in mind. The penguin classics book covers all the greatest works of fiction, poetry, drama, history, and philosophy in between, this readers companion encompasses 500 authors, 1,200 books, and 4,000 years of world literature, from ancient mesopotamia to world war i. It was cofounded in 1935 by sir allen lane with his brothers richard and john, as a line of the publishers the bodley head, only becoming a separate company the following year. No matter what youre looking for or where you are in the world, our global marketplace of sellers can help you find unique and affordable options. Penguin recently commissioned miller to design a series of books by edgar allan poe and writers of fairy storiesin other words, to create book covers based on millers paintings of other book covers. Covers from hans schmollers original design for penguin modern classics which featured a palette of dove grey, orange, black and white. Both bibliophiles and design buffs will be enthralled by the book, which features hundreds of stunning covers paired with commentary by the artists. The main point of this publication was to address a brief history of penguin book cover design during the jan tschichold years.

The books in the modern series all had grey spines. Cover to cover delivers 288 pages of literary eye candy. Popular english art by noel carrington and clarke hutton, 1945. When penguin was founded in 1935 with the radical concept of producing inexpensive paperback editions of high quality books, it adopted an. Penguin founded their design ethos of covers in the same fashion as their ethos for the. Jul 30, 2014 hillary kelly is the digital media editor at the new republic.