ABDA is inviting nominations for the Australian Book Design Hall of Fame.

Since the Hall of Fame was first established in 1994, the Award has been presented to designers whose body of work and role in the book industry has made a significant contribution to book design in Australia.

The current members of the Hall of Fame are W.H. Chong, Sandy Cull, Deborah Brash, George Dale, Harry Williamson, Arthur Stokes, Alec Bolton and Patrick Coyle.

NOMINATION PROCEDURE

To nominate a designer for the Hall of Fame please provide:

• the name and contact information of the person you wish to nominate.
• a 500-word statement about the nominee’s contribution to the industry. This may include their support of others in the industry; their contribution to training/mentoring; involvement in industry events promoting design; design education; and any other outstanding contributions and qualities.
• three letters of support for the nomination from colleagues and/or people in the industry, each to be no more than 300 words.

All information should be emailed to info@abda.com.au by no later than 5pm on
Monday 15 February 2016.

A special advisory panel will be convened to assist the ABDA Committee in the selection process.

If you have any questions about the Hall of Fame or the nomination process, please contact Claire via info@abda.com.au.

Join the Australian Book Designers Association’s committee, members and friends and celebrate the organisation’s second year.

Events will be held simultaneously in Sydney and Melbourne.

Everyone is welcome; drinks at bar prices.

The ABDA Committee is delighted to announce that entries for the 64th Australian Book Design Awards are now open.

The competition is open to books designed and published for the first time in Australia between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2015.

Entries are open in sixteen categories, including Young Designer of the Year, Best Designed Scholarly and Reference Book (new for 2016), and the revamped Best Designed Independent Book for titles with a print run of less than 1000 copies.

For full entry details please visit the Awards page or download the Submission Guidelines (PDF).

Entries for the Awards close on Friday 18 December 2015.

If you have any questions about the Awards please email info@abda.com.au.

ABDA members and friends are invited to join us at UTS in Sydney for a special presentation by book artist, binder and printmaker Monica Oppen.

Monica is the creator of Bibliotheca Librorum apud Artificem, a private collection of books made by printmakers, photographers, photomonteurs, painters, writers and poets.

Monica will present and discuss a selection of recent books from artists including Peter Malutzki, Ines von Ketelhodt, Ulrike Stoltz and Uta Schneider.

This is a free event but places are strictly limited and bookings are essential.

The Australian Book Designers Association was formed in 2014 to safeguard the future of the longest running design awards in Australia: the annual Book Design Awards, held annually since 1952.

The Awards recognise excellence in Australian book design, but also afford an opportunity for the book design community to gather in the one place. For many of us, the most enjoyable part of the Awards event is spending time among our peers – to network, but more importantly to socialise with like-minded individuals. Book designers are a curious, well-read and passionate bunch, but often we work alone or in small teams, so it’s good to feel part of a community.

In the process of taking over the Awards, the initial committee of volunteers began discussing how to expand beyond a single annual event. A central hub for the book design community was sorely lacking. The ABDA mission, developed over many long conversations, includes the following promise:

ABDA will provide a virtual home for its members, offering news, forums, educational events and more. ABDA will be a dynamic network for industry professionals.

This website is the foundation for our evolving, engaged book design community. It is a space to discover news and events and to read articles by and about book designers. It is a site for publishers to advertise jobs and to find designers, and for ABDA members to showcase our work to the world.

The site gives us national (and international) reach, and we extend a warm welcome to designers from cities other than Melbourne and Sydney who have been unable to attend events.

Take some time to browse the archive and the member profiles. Read the blog – there will be regular posts, fresh ideas and provocative discussions from our members. Check upcoming events – they’re for you. And don’t forget: spread the word! ABDA is an emerging non-profit organisation, we rely on the participation of our members to expand and develop our association.

Zoë Sadokierski, President, Australian Book Designers Association

Image designed by W.H. Chong