A Haven of Peace in a busy world
A design to be used for a very special reading treat by my favourite independent bookshop: Cogito Books in Hexham.
The design had to encapsulate the connection between the comforts of home and a bookshop, with emphasis on the attention to detail and care that Cogito owners Claire and Mike put into each and every single one of their transactions with their customers. Communication is something they are justifiably proud of, and whilst many bookshops will direct you to their website for recommended reading suggestions, Claire and her team would rather talk to their customer themselves over the phone. This was a bit of a literary lifeline for many during the coronavirus lockdowns, and is reflected in the print.
The design
Our initial conversation was around the idea of ‘bespoke’, and how to get across the message that Cogito Books provides a bespoke service to all of its customers. My clients also wanted to marry the concept of a home and their bookshop, so I used the sofa from the bookshop in a changing setting in which one side of the image is clearly a bookshop, whilst the other is someone’s home. The readers sitting on each end of the sofa are equally relaxed in both settlings, and enjoying their Haven of Peace in a Busy World
From a set of initial drawings, I worked up a final design with my client. They loved the connection between bookshop and home which the sofa suggested, but felt that it ought to be populated, so I drew in a couple reading, and made some tweaks to the background to make it clear that one side is a shop and the other a home. Cogito Books is such a homely place that many elements fit equally in both halves.
As you can see from the initial design sketches, the first plan was to have a multicoloured two block print, but once my clients started to see my design line drawings they felt that a simpler, black and white image with just a pop of colour (the green bookmark on the side table) might give the right impression. For the final copies of the print, I am using slivers of the official Cogito bookmark, collaged onto the print.
The finished print is going to be used as gift cards for the Cogito Books personalised Reading Treat book subscription service, and will also be available through Cogito Books as a tote bag.
A Haven of Peace in a Busy World
Edition size: 20
Oil based ink on Japanese Hosho paper with collage
