Back to School with Sara Loos RGD

In this edition, Sara Loos RGD reflects on her educational journey to receive a master's degree in Book Design and her dream project with Oxford University Press to create a new design for Isaiah Berlin’s works.

Where did you go to school, and when? Describe the program and the context for the project you are presenting.

When I finished my undergraduate degree in 2012, I knew I wanted to work in publishing, but I didn’t know in what capacity. I took a certificate course in trade publishing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University), thinking I would be an editor. When I realized that I couldn’t use a comma to save my life, I took a course on book design for fun and fell in love. In 2014, I decided to pursue a Master’s Degree in book design at the University of Reading. It was a lovely mix of practical design knowledge and theory. We spent time in the archives examining old texts and also worked on practical design projects with l studios in London.

Describe the assignment given that was the basis for this project.

During the year-long course, we were assigned five practical design projects. Our final project, our professional project, involved working with a professor who shared our designs with an external client. It gave us some real-world design experience, teaching us to work within a client’s needs, brand identity and budget, all while receiving the support of our professors. My client was Oxford University Press, a dream client! I was asked to create a new design for Isaiah Berlin’s works. The goal was to introduce a new audience to Berlin’s work; the main challenge was creating a design that would work best for several typographical elements present within the different texts. How do you keep consistency when you need to be flexible?

Describe your process for coming up with and executing your concept. (Were there any obstacles that you had to overcome or unexpected learnings?)

The discovery phase was very important in this project. I looked over the previous editions that the client had published and also looked at how other publishers typeset this same collection of works. The main challenge was creating a design that was ‘fresh and modern’ while ensuring it fit within the classic ‘Oxford Press’ look. The typeface choice was the most challenging. Which two fonts would complement each other and yet not overpower the design? A good book design is a design you don’t notice while you’re reading. I tried a sans serif for the headers and a serif for the body text but that didn’t work, and we settled on Stempel Garamond throughout. This created nice simplicity in the design. The margin sizes were also a challenge. Would narrow margins give it a more classic look or should they be smaller to save money on printing costs? We settled on a moderate margin size to give the text room to run across the page. The typesetting was a breeze after all that, which is a sign the design is strong.

How was the project received at school? (Grade, feedback from the instructor and peers) (Were there any unexpected outcomes or ways that your project lived beyond school?)

My project was very well-received by my peers and professors. Overall, the client was happy with the design but felt that it was a safe choice when they wanted something more innovative. The students all received feedback on their projects in our tutorials. Upon hearing this feedback from my professor, my classmates very kindly rebutted this feedback on my behalf, arguing that the design fit well within the Oxford Press look. I had no prior design knowledge before this program and during the year-long course, I could design, print and bind all five of my projects. When these were presented at my final display, those who had seen my designs from the beginning of the year until the end were very complimentary of my progress as a designer. I received my highest grade on this project.

If you were a professional critiquing your own work, what would you say? If you were to revisit the project today, what would you change or do differently?

If I had to do the project now, I would take more risks with the design. I would have gone a little more modern, using a sans-serif font for most of the design and doing a type-only cover using primary colours to give the book a boldness. Maybe a slipcase with foil and a clear jacket with some print to build on the design underneath. Looking back on the project, I am incredibly proud of my design. It sparked my desire to work on complex novel designs, something I still do today.