About the year 2011
The competition 'The Most Beautiful Swiss Books' on an annual basis. It thereby recognizes excellence in the field of book design and production, as well drawing attention to remarkable and contemporary books by Swiss designers, printers and publishers. The independent, five-member jury presided by Manuel Krebs, awarded a total of 27 books from a total of 392 submissions as the most beautiful Swiss books of 2011. The Jan Tschichold Award, which honours excellence in the field of book design, this year goes to printer Erich Keiser of the Druckerei Odermatt in Dallenwil (canton of Nidwalden), Switzerland.
For the first time in nine years, two children's books have been awarded: 'Oskar Tiger' by Dieter Meier and Franziska Burkhardt (Kein & Aber) as well as 'Ghost Knigi' by Benjamin Sommerhalder (Nieves).
The jury takes into account each book's overall concept, graphic design and typography, and pays particular attention to innovation and originality. Further criteria include the quality of the printing and the cover, the binding and the materials used.
From 6. to 11. July 2012, the The Most Beautiful Swiss Books will be exhibited at the Helmhaus Zürich, alongside the simultaneous publication of the catalogue showcasing the competition (design: Aude Lehmann). On the occasion of the exhibition opening, the Jan Tschichold Award winner will receive his award.
In the autumn of this year, the books will be presented, for the first time, at ECAL/University of Art & Design Lausanne. As in the previous year, all the submitted books entered into the competition will be displayed alongside the award-winning titles.
Jury
Manuel Krebs, 1970, Bern, Chair
Studied graphic design at the School of Applied Arts in Biel-Bienne. Established the graphic design studio Norm together with Dimitri Bruni in 1999, with a focus on designing and publishing books and typefaces. Book design includes self-commissioned research in the field of type and graphic design, the most relevant being 'Norm: Introduction' (2000) and 'Norm: The Things' (2002). Commissions include numerous collaborations with museums (TATE Modern; Kunsthaus Zurich; Museum for Design Zurich) and artists (Fischli & Weiss; Simon Starling; Dieter Roth). Examples for type design include the 'Simple' typeface for Cologne airport (2003), the corporate typeface for OMEGA watches, the typeface 'Replica' (2008) and the corporate typeface for Swatch (2010). In 2005, Norm won first prize in the Swiss National Bank's competition for the new banknote series. In 2011, Norm was awarded the Grand Prix Design by the Swiss Government. Norm is currently working with the Louvre Paris on the signage and communication of the Louvre-Lens, which will open in winter 2012.
Will Holder, 1969, Hatfield (UK)
Trained in typography, Will Holder's practice encompasses authorship, editorial, typesetting, photographic printing and distribution. He is editor of F.R.DAVID, a journal concerned with reading and writing in the arts, published by de Appel, Amsterdam, and is currently editing and designing a biography of American composer Robert Ashley in the form of musical notation (together with Alex Waterman), and rewriting William Morris' 'News from Nowhere (An epoch of rest)' (1876) into a guide for design education and practice set in 2135. In May 2009, Holder curated 'Talk Show' at the ICA, an exhibition and month-long event programme concerning speech and conversation as a model for production. He has been teaching at the Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, since 1999, and ran the research project 'The Tomorrow Book' at the Jan van Eyck Academie, Maastricht. He lives in London.
Christina Reble, 1950, Zürich
Trained in the domain of publishing and das a type designer. From 1973-1985, she worked as an editor at the Institute for the History and Theory of Architecture (gta) at the ETH Zurich; collaboration with Hans-Rudolf Lutz. Independent publishing projects. At the Museum of Design Zurich since 1986 as Head of Publications, with emphasis on visual communication, design and architecture. Collaborations with designers, printers and publishing partners. Consulting and teaching activities at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).
Christoph Schifferli, 1950, Ascona
Studied sinology, economic history and computer science in Paris; earned a doctorate in Chinese economic history in 1980. From 1981, research assignments in Asia, as well as various commissions in the areas of publishing and technology; since 1983 active in the domains of multimedia and internet, with a special emphasis on the arts, culture and education. Collector of photography as well as art and photography books since the 1980s.
Lex Trüb, 1971, Horgen
Studied graphic design at the Schule für Gestaltung, Zurich. In 2001, co-founded Nieves with Benjamin Sommerhalder, where he remained active until 2003. Art direction at the Schauspielhaus Zürich from 2002-04. Since 2005, collaborating with Urs Lehni as Lehni-Trueb in the fields of book design, exhibition design, identity work and workshops for various institutions, museums, artists and architects in Switzerland and abroad. Established 'Bookhorse' in 2008 as a vehicle for diverse publishing activities/collaborations with artists and writers. Currently working with Lytle Shaw on 'The Moiré Effect', a book about the mysterious life of the Swiss photographer Ernst Moiré.