365: AIGA Year in Design 24
competition catalogue
concept development, art direction, book design, and production
Every year the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) sponsors nationwide design competitions. The best of the year’s work is then gathered in one volume. This book, 365: AIGA Year in Design is a 400-page volume that features images of each selection, comments by the designers, retrospectives of two luminaries in the design field, and excerpts from a novel by Nicholson Baker.
design Annuals like 365 are evidence of work in progress, and also reference works. As such, we wanted this book to have a pronounced editorial and visual structure—to be easy to navigate. Small and soft-cover, 365 fits comfortably in the hand like a guidebook.
We chose Nicholson Baker’s text to replace the traditional essay with the work of a literary writer. His novel, A Box of Matches, beautifully captures the essence of graphic design as a part of everyday life. Baker’s keen observations and extraordinary attention to detail are portrayed through the eyes of a consumer, making it relatable and humorous. For the cover, we selected a sensuous velvet material that accentuates the book as an object that can be touched, picked up, and felt like Baker’s chipped cup.
client Founded in 1914 as the American Institute of Graphic Arts, AIGA is now known simply as “AIGA, the professional association for design.” It is the oldest and largest professional membership organization for design—with 70 chapters and more than 25,000 members.
collaborators
Gabriela Mirensky, director of competitions
Nicholson Baker, text
Jack H. Summerford, text
Alice Twemlow, text
awards
AIGA 50 Books/50 Covers, American Institute of Graphic Arts, New York. ID Magazine Annual Design Review, Honorable Mention, New York. The Most Beautiful Swiss Books, Swiss Federal Office of Culture, Bern. Dutch Design Awards, Eindhoven
collections
Museum of Modern Art, New York
The Art Institute of Chicago
articles & links
365: AIGA Year in Design 24, store
AIGA, design archives
Nicholson Baker, A Box of Matches
