The project takes the form of a book about bookmaking itself and explores how risks are absorbed, avoided, or deliberately exposed through design rules. The book functions as a practical design guide for young designers, aims to serve as a useful supplement throughout a designer’s practice.
The book is structured in two main parts: design and production. Rather than relying on long textual explanations, these rules are communicated directly through visual and material cues in the structure of the pages. Techniques such as layering, unfolding, and variations in material are used to articulate these distinctions.
Color operates as an underlying logic within this system. Blue marks decisions that align with established conventions. Magenta highlights moments where designers can take calculated risks and push against those rules. Yellow signals intentional rule-breaking, where deviation becomes a deliberate design strategy rather than a mistake.
Spreads constructed with three layers corresponding to the three tonal levels of the project: safe, risky, and breakable. These spreads operate through varying degrees of rule, positioning the most stable condition at the surface and underlying layers progressing toward greater rule-breaking. This interaction allows readers to observe how small modifications can shift a design decision. In certain instances, the layered system shifts from a vertical hierarchy to a lateral arrangement, bringing all possible states into view all at once.