OUGD404 - Study Task 06 - Covers and Binding

The traditional definition of a book is 'a written or printed work consisting of pages glued or sewn together along one side and bound in covers', but there are many different interpretations of what a book can be. The rules of book design can be bent, or even ignored, and cover size and shape, bindings, and page size and shape can all be altered to produce a dynamic range of publications. Some examples are shown below:

A three-quarter portrait cover with ribbon and metal fastenings

Wrap around cover with fold out front page - no definitive cover to the book

Japanese binding

A three quarter landscape cover with loose thread binding

Japanese binding with a half size cover

Chicago screw binding

Catalogue bound in an envelope

One corner chicago screw binding

Folded front cover - lose the distinction between the inside and the outside of the book

Quarter-size front cover with metal fastening

Full run sewn binding across the front and back covers, rather than on the spine

Catalogues of varying sizes put together to make one front cover

Screen printed cellophane sleeve