6th April, 2020: Shruti Maliwar
Book binding is very essential since it gives a better definition to the book and holds it together. It is necessary to understand the type of book binding which will suit a particular book and how it will provide a final appearance. Therefore, exploring some the binding techniques helped us in understanding the process of binding books and the different styles in which it could be done.
A prototype basically provides us with the look of the final product once it is created. It gives us a better idea of a how a certain book will look when it is printed. Here, the layout plays a vital role. It helps us in understanding the placement and structure of the elements in the book and if there are any changes which might be required.
I started off by making my prototype for my coffee table book by laying out a basic layout. It helped me in placing the necessary aspects such as my illustrations, text and pictures in place. The grid structure is important since it gives shape to the entire book. The next part was to put in the content through a few lines of text and placeholder images. I also made sure to include my book jacket to give a better sense of how the cover would look. This helped me in understanding the layout of my book once it was printed and how interactive it could be.
This is the final prototype:
I also added the Bibliography page at the end of the book. This page included the list of references for my book and also a short write up about the tools which I used for creating the illustrations for my book. The layout was inspired by my ‘Contents Page’ layout and was placed across one full spread. I also tried to keep the font and typography similar to the contents page. Keeping this in mind, I created the Bibliography Page.
The foldout of the timeline was an essential part of the book and also the most interactive part. It gave the reader a better idea of the placement of objects in a chronological order and a foldout which could be used to place them in a better way. It was also be a break between the continuous pages of a book and provide a distinct aspect as a whole.
My foldout was based on the timeline of Swords. I designed it in such a way that I could depict six swords from six different time periods laid across the foldout. A proper column structure helped me in the placement of these swords. For the layout, I decided to keep the colour scheme different from the rest of the book , yet suitable. I also made a choice of colours which complimented each other and at the same time, highlighted the swords. For the illustrations, I chose to keep them black and white with a texture on them. Therefore, I made use of illustrator for the same. Apart from this, I also added some shapes like circles to highlight the sword and rectangles to divide the information and to emphasize the date and name of the sword.
These were the illustrations ( using illustrator):
This is the final foldout:
Final Foldout
I made sure to include the foldout in my prototype. It gave the reader a better sense of the opening and reading of the foldout and how it would appear in print.
It was mainly about bringing all the aspects of the book together and finalizing the book as a whole.
The Idealist 