Case Study

Print design and logo adaption for The AJR

Book interior design, book cover design, ebook creation, print book output and publishing project guidance

The brief

Storytelling is important. Sharing first person accounts helps others to learn from experiences. Oral history provides an accurate picture of the past by augmenting the information provided by records, data, photographs, maps, letters, diaries, and other historical materials.

The Association of Jewish Refugees have been working with me for several years on a series of books called ‘My Story’. The brief was to create a book design that could be adapted for the many stories that the volunteers for the My Story series were collecting from Jewish refugees and Holocaust survivors. These books form part of the library of work at the museum curated by The AJR, a keepsake for the families and used in workshops which raise awareness of the Holocaust.

The task

The design was created using draft text from the very first interview. We experimented with different page sizes so that the point size was easy to read but didn't create bulky books that would cost more to print or be difficult to handle. A neat square measuring 120 x 120mm was perfect. The book is printed with Book Printing UK who handle the short print run.

The choice of typeface was important as the text contained Cyrillic characters. The font is Adobe Caslon Pro. The logo for The AJR was not developed for book printing which meant creating a new set of guidelines for brand use in book form.

The books present some challenges with the images. Often the photos have travelled a lifetime and many miles, and have been damaged. Work on these in Photoshop is handled with great sensitivity. What I may think is a scribble, could be a precious signature or the lost information of a photographic studio. Some titles may not have any images at all. One subject had just one image for his book; I supported Naomi and Debra with sourcing further images from photo libraries. Other images may be low resolution or poorly photographed so the design of the pages allows for this. Where possible, the full page is used.

Photographers take portraits for the front covers. Sometimes we were limited in this too if the subject is unwell or sadly passed before the book is completed. Covid also presented some challenges with the photographer taking images from a distance on their doorstep or asking family members to get creative with phones.

Once designed, the books are proofed by the family and The AJR team. I take in all the corrections and provide the files for print for Book Printing UK. I have also attended the book launch in London and was thrilled to talk to the families. One of the most moving comments I have received about the books was from the late Tom Egri’s daughter who told me how much the family and Tom valued the care taken over the design.

The result

The AJR have published 30 books on their website. As well as being on display in London, the books are in the National Library of Israel and form a key part of Holocaust education programmes.

Other work

Ask Me Again In November

The AJR has a poetry club that’s supported by a team of volunteers. Naomi who, is one of the project managers for My Story, asked me to design a book of poetry, dedicated to the founder of the group and as a gift to the volunteers.

Continental Britons

This publication was one that didn’t exist! It was produced many years go and the source files were missing. The AJR asked me to recreate the book including the cover and all inside pages for inclusion at an exhibition.