Book Design — That’s Unbelievable

This book creates a visual and typographic story using the November 21st, 2009, issue of the Austin American Statesman. Words and images from different stories were combined to communicate a message different than was originally intended. The message created is a combination of irony, humor, and political discourse; it is unbelievable because it is unbelievable the actions people will take. Unfortunately, it is also only too believable what people will do out of ignorance, greed, and to advance political agendas. A clean, stark design was chosen to emphasize the hard blacks and grays generated by the copy machine and scanner. In addition, the clean white space and intense blacks metaphorically highlight the divide between right and wrong and punctuate the seriousness of the subject. Structurally pieces of tape hold the book together on two levels. From a composition standpoint the tape provides design continuity, and from a mechanical standpoint the tape actually holds the headlines and images on the page and provides color to contrast the black and white pages. On the front cover a face with tape covering the mouth is used to symbolize the censorship in society that the book is subtly commenting on. These elements pull the book together in a cohesive design that reinforces the concept with the goal to force the reader to consider the themes illustrated, have an emotional reaction, and reconsider their views no matter how unbelievable they may be.