Where is my home?
A book about the Czech national anthem
A book about the Czech national anthem
At the beginning of May 2008, we won a contest organised by the Czech Government and launched a project of a book dedicated to the Czech national anthem. drafts. Out of three drafts, the client opted for the challenging version with the glass cover. This decision launched a period of discussions and search for a suitable solution. The manufacture of the glass sheets turned out to be pretty straightforward, Zdeněk Lhotský collaborated closely with the designers and the whole process of making went without a flaw. It wasn't so easy when it came to attaching the glass onto the paper cover — here, we were rescued by the 3M heavy duty spray glue.
The layout of the book was designed by Honza Dobeš. The key building element of the print is the horizontal plane to which all the typographic elements relate. The layout is set in Czech national colours, adjusted to be of deeper, subdued tones and mingling into each other in gradient. The book is printed on fine, light yellow paper Splendor gel Avorio.
Small problems appeared also when it came to the binding and the paper. Printing presses was hesitant to try a new type of binding where the structure is exposed, and it’s even covered in a pattern which, after binding, turns out to be the title of the book. In the end, the task was taken on by Marcel Nezbeda from the Typodesign press in České Budějovice who was really helpful. To print the binding correctly, the pages first needed to be digitally imposed, which task we’ve done in collaboration with the Marvil company, the pages were then exported into PDF and imported into InDesign file. Then, thin strips with bits of the text went onto the binding in appropriate places.
The book includes a CD with both new and old interpretations of the Czech national anthem. The CD is attached into the back cover, composed of two sheets of carton. The glass book weighs over two and half kilos, so special, three-layered bubble wrap sleeves were made for it to protect it from harm. Apart from the limited print run of the book with the glass cover, we also made a version with a regular, paper cover to be distributed in bookshops.
The book was put together by a theory of music writer Gabriel Gössel, by a drama scholar Jan Hyvnar by a theory of music expert Markéta Kabelková, and historian Robert Sak. The book was published by the Czech Government Office in collaboration with the National Museum and Czech Radio.
The book was awarded the second price in the National Museum Contest in the Musem Books category. We presented the books at two cenferencies, at Kupé 04, Žilina, Slovakia, and ED Conference, Zurich, Switzerland.
The layout of the book was designed by Honza Dobeš. The key building element of the print is the horizontal plane to which all the typographic elements relate. The layout is set in Czech national colours, adjusted to be of deeper, subdued tones and mingling into each other in gradient. The book is printed on fine, light yellow paper Splendor gel Avorio.
Small problems appeared also when it came to the binding and the paper. Printing presses was hesitant to try a new type of binding where the structure is exposed, and it’s even covered in a pattern which, after binding, turns out to be the title of the book. In the end, the task was taken on by Marcel Nezbeda from the Typodesign press in České Budějovice who was really helpful. To print the binding correctly, the pages first needed to be digitally imposed, which task we’ve done in collaboration with the Marvil company, the pages were then exported into PDF and imported into InDesign file. Then, thin strips with bits of the text went onto the binding in appropriate places.
The book includes a CD with both new and old interpretations of the Czech national anthem. The CD is attached into the back cover, composed of two sheets of carton. The glass book weighs over two and half kilos, so special, three-layered bubble wrap sleeves were made for it to protect it from harm. Apart from the limited print run of the book with the glass cover, we also made a version with a regular, paper cover to be distributed in bookshops.
The book was put together by a theory of music writer Gabriel Gössel, by a drama scholar Jan Hyvnar by a theory of music expert Markéta Kabelková, and historian Robert Sak. The book was published by the Czech Government Office in collaboration with the National Museum and Czech Radio.
The book was awarded the second price in the National Museum Contest in the Musem Books category. We presented the books at two cenferencies, at Kupé 04, Žilina, Slovakia, and ED Conference, Zurich, Switzerland.
