Award-winning book & magazine design | D&AD Awards Insights 2021

Editorial design is a hugely evocative category, whether it’s printed books and magazines that celebrate the power of tactile connection, or a cover illustration that’s a gut-punch reminder of some of society’s biggest issues. The D&AD judges discuss book design, the power of illustration, photography and whether the pressure to claim social media likes is affecting today’s creative work.

#BookDesign #PrintDesign #Illustration #Photography

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction by Bonita Darkoh, Arts and Culture Editor at Large
0:52 Breonna Taylor - September 2020 Cover Illustration – The power of illustration, “it was a bit like a religious portrait, and that’s very strong visually”
3:57 When Cooking was a Crime: Masak in the Singapore Prisons, 1970s-80s – Book design, “the considerations that the designer made, from the colour to the folding technique that was used to the cover design, everything was so well considered”
7:29 Illustrator Kun Lam’s IMBALANCE – “Strong visual impact… it allows people to generate new thinking and inspiration in the process rather than a simple delicate picture and excellent technology.”
10:23 Dove’s Courage is Beautiful – portraits of real frontline healthcare workers, wearing the toll of the pandemic on their faces. The photographer “managed to capture kind of the energy, the life of each of their subjects.”
13:38 How would the judges describe the D&AD Awards judging experience
14:48 How global trends and cultural issues have influenced the work submitted to the 2021 D&AD Awards
20:23 What the judges wished they saw more of in the work submitted – there was a lot of focus on craft but the work was very safe
23:36 What the judges wished they saw more of in the work submitted – Craft is important but “makes all the difference if you have a strong story to tell.”
24:57 What the judges wished they saw more of in the work submitted – more fun and playfulness
25:27 What the judges wished they saw more of in the work submitted – Creatives should be wary of social media creating increasingly homogenised work
28:13 What the judges wished they saw more of in the work submitted – “I don't think it is necessary to fully understand or accept it, but whether this work is connected to the society or focus on culture can be seen.”
30:24 The judges key takeaways from work submitted to the 2021 D&AD Awards – “You have to have something unique.”
31:57 The judges key takeaways from work submitted to the 2021 D&AD Awards – the work submitted spreads across different categories
32:56 The judges key takeaways from work submitted to the 2021 D&AD Awards – “being curious is a really underestimated but very important thing”
34:44 The judges key takeaways from work submitted to the 2021 D&AD Awards – photography and illustration are not there to “complement to the words that tell the story.”
36:58 Print in the digital age – “it's a beautiful tactile medium.”

Work mentioned:
Vanity Fair, Breonna Taylor - September 2020 Cover Illustration
In Plain Words, When Cooking was a Crime: Masak in the Singapore Prisons, 1970s-80s, Practice Theory
Naughty Roll, IMBALANCE, Indego Design
Unilever, Courage is Beautiful, Ogilvy UK / Ogilvy Toronto
Green Around the Corner, Boy Who Could Not Wait, Ki Saigon
Essity, #wombstories, AMV BBDO
Casa Vivi and Casa Anastácia, Blue Light, AKQA

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