The Best Dutch Book Designs 2022

Every year the Stedelijk and the Best Dutch Book Designs Foundation present the most outstanding book designs of the past twelve months. From a total of 262 submissions, the expert jury selected 33 titles which go on display on 30 September. Each was chosen for the excellence of its design, typography, binding, lithography, and balance of form and content. A selection of poetry, art, photography, and architecture books, as well as non-fiction and children's books, made the final cut. In addition to the 33 jury-selected designs, the exhibition also presents the student jury’s pick. This year, the Stedelijk is adding an additional feature: a small tribute to graphic designer Anthon Beeke to mark the posthumous publication of his impressive photobook Amsterdam, Amsterdam, which was shelved for 30 years, and is part of the student jury's selection.

The jury noted that the rise in book sales during the pandemic is continuing, indicating that the physical book as a tangible creation is alive and well. The object quality and physicality of the book was central to the jury's considerations. Components such as the tactile experience, the feel of the paper, the book’s weight and size, and the coherence between the exterior and interior all played a role. The volumes chosen exhibit attention to detail in design, experimental formats, unusual effects, with sleeves and cassettes – some more convincing than others.

ABOUT THE SELECTION
Three books in the selection belong to the categories prose, poetry and graphic novel: Abdelkader Benali – Nietszeggende feiten (publisher: Stichting De Roos, design: Tessa van der Waals, production: Zwaan Lenoir), The European Review of Books (design: Patrick Doan, production: Wilco Art Books, publisher: Stichting European Review of Books) en Mustafa Stitou – Waar is het lam? (design: Michaël Snitker, production: Wilco BV, publisher: De Bezige Bij).

Two children's books by the following authors were selected: Joëlle Jolivet – Ons lichaam (design: Rudy Vrooman, production: Asia Pacific Offset Ltd (HK), publisher: De Harmonie) and by Jan Paul Schutten – Van Rotta tot Roffa (design: Beukers Scholma, production: Zwaan Lenoir, Voetelink Grafische Afwerking, publisher: Stad en Bedrijf).

Among the selection are three informative non-fiction titles: Roosmarijn Hompe – Greet ten Holte. Wegbereider van het internationaal cultuurbeleid, 1945-1973 (design: Irma Boom Office (Irma Boom, Anna Moschioni), production: Wilco Art Books, publisher: Waanders); Paul van Ravestein, Monique Mulder – De zure stad (design: Mattmo Creative, production: Pixel-it, Drukarnia, publisher: Nijgh & van Ditmar) and Kirsten Marie Raahuage (ed.) et al., Architectures of Dismantling and Restructuring (design: Joost Grootens, Dimitri Jeannottat, Philipp Doringer, Julie da Silva, production: Marjeta Morinc (lithography), Wilco Art Books, publisher: Lars Müller Publishers).

No fewer than four publications by graphic designer Hans Gremmen were chosen: Footprint, Imagine, Some Things Bleak, and S75; the first three were published by his publisher Fw:Books, the last by Roma Publications.

Two student projects also made it through to the selection: Bloom by Woobok Lee (design: Woobok Lee, production and publisher: ArtEZ Arnhem) and A Sensitive Study of the St. Privat's Disappearing Gay Cruising Scene in the Ripparian Forest by Alyson Sillon (design: Alyson Sillon, production and publisher: Gerrit Rietveld Academie.

You can see the full list here.

INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION
At the annual competition for the Schönste Bücher aus aller Welt in Leipzig, two Dutch books were awarded prizes. In fact, the Dutch selection is entered for this international competition every year. The above mentioned Architectures of Dismantling and Restructuring was awarded the Bronze Medal, Capturing Nature, published by Zucker Art Books (USA), design: Haller Brun, production: robstolk® received an Honorable Mention.

ANTHON BEEKE
The exhibition also showcases the posthumous edition of Anthon Beeke's book Amsterdam, Amsterdam, which he produced thirty years ago. However, Bert Bakker did not publish it at the time—according to Beeke, he found it “too anarchic”. For three decades it was stored in a cardboard box, and it was not until 2022, four years after Beeke's death, that it was published by Koninklijke Kampert and Helm Rotaform. The large, weighty volume which has its title printed quirkily on the back rather than the front, features a powerful collection of photographs sequenced in a driving, dynamic narrative rhythm; the design places the image center-stage, accompanied by restrained typography.
In homage to Anthon Beeke, curator Thomas Castro adds the designer’s ‘studio floorplans’, which go on display here for the first time. In an attempt to capture the creative process, they are topographical descriptions of artists' studios, mapping every object from artworks to electrical outlets—from the portholes of Lawrence Weiner's houseboat to the pegs of Ger van Elk's tent to Marina Abramović's amethyst shoes for her performance Departure.

ABOUT THE BEST DUTCH BOOK DESIGNS
The exhibition of The Best Dutch Book Designs has a long-standing tradition at the Stedelijk Museum. The inaugural presentation was mounted in 1932 and, with a few exceptions, has been held annually at the Stedelijk Museum ever since. The Dutch Best Dutch Book Designs is the oldest contest of its kind in Europe to be judged by an expert jury.

The jury for the 2022 edition consists of Sarah van Binsbergen (art journalist and reviewer), Pascal Brun (graphic designer, Haller Brun), Thomas Castro (graphic design curator Stedelijk Museum and designer), Eleonoor Jap Sam (publisher, Jap Sam) and Stefano van der Knaap (creative director of printing house Zwaan Lenoir).

The student jury included Anna Lebedieva (Academie Minerva), Jeanne Gironde (Rietveld Academie), Noa Wassink (Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht), Cate Sanvitale-Simone (ArtEZ, Arnhem) and Lucas Mainieri Franco (Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, The Hague).

Exhibition design: Paul Kuipers. Most of the books are on sale in the museum shop, together with the catalogs published especially for this exhibition.

The expert jury catalog was designed by Akiko Wakabayashi; Jeanne Gironde designed the student catalog.

The Best Dutch Book Designs is made possible with the financial support of ASF, Pictoright Amsterdam, paper supplier Igepa Netherlands, Tiel and L. van Heek Textiles.
BNO has been a partner for many years.