THE PAGES WE TAKE FOR GRANTED
Print Design, 2019
Brief: Create 4 books and a subsequent 100+ page book about a topic of your choice.
The Pages We Take For Granted is a collection of 4 different books, each with its own identity and layout, but all highlighting an aspect of the book object that is often overlooked and taken for granted. The content of the 4 books was compiled into a final 130-page book, condensing The Pages We Take For Granted.
Brand Identity and Conception by Amber Liu.
THE FINAL BOOK
This 130-page book is a culmination of the content from Books 1–4 that all highlight different ways we often take books for granted. It is divided into 3 sections: within, among and beyond [ the pages we take for granted ].
The form of the book mimics stacked books and shelves, and the book is enclosed in an outer hardback that is adorned with leather fabric and bound by magnets.
Design and book binding by Amber Liu.
BOOK 1: THE LIBRARY
The journey one takes when reading a book starts from discovering a book and purchasing it, all the way to becoming a fan of the author and watching a film adaptation. We experience books in many different forms and events yet we often take for granted how accessible it is.
The Library showcases each step in both an analog and digital medium to highlight how our interactions with books differ depending on if it is happening online or offline.
Part 1: ONLINE
16 GIFs were created and encoded into a webpage to display the comparison between online and offline experiences.
GIFs and Coding by Amber Liu.
Part 2: Offline
These GIFs were broken down to their core frames and turned into flipbooks.
Design and binding by Amber Liu.
BOOK 2: BOOKS CHANGE
The content of books is perhaps what unites book lovers everywhere but we take for granted the impact what we read has on our environment and on ourselves.
Books Change is a collection comprised of quotes about books from history's most famous authors, designed around illustrated cues related to their statements.
Design, Illustrations and Binding by Amber Liu.
BOOK 3: BOOKSTORES
Independent bookstores represent the innocence of books and in a city like New York, there are sure to be some iconic ones that may often get overlooked or taken for granted, but are powerful all the same.
The third book of this series features interviews with various people about their favorite bookstores.
Design and binding by Amber Liu.
BOOK 4: BOOK BINDING
Binding books is a lost art but it is also a beautiful one. We often do not take the time to look at how a book is bound, appreciate the craft or recognize the value it adds to the overall book experience.
This fourth book is comprised of four smaller books, each looking at a four different way of binding books. Research about that particular method as well as illustrated steps on how to hand-bind is presented. Each of the four books are then also bound in said method.
Design and binding by Amber Liu.
