PAPER AND INK $75
            Isobel Chiang 
            2024










Paper is a crucial part of a book maker’s craft. Using paper in interesting and thoughtful ways requires not only material sensitivity, but a deep knowledge of how paper is made, distributed, printed on, and bound together. Half production manual, half paper swatchbook, Paper and Ink is both a technical and theoretical resource for anyone wanting to use paper and printing to shape the message, atmosphere, and concept of a book. It explores the relationship between paper, printing, and binding and is our attempt to share the knowledge our studio has amassed through 150+ book projects over the past 5 years. It’s centered around the idea that material “specs” such as paper, endsheets, thread, ink laydown, specialty finishes, folding structure, and cover materials all belong to the book as much as its content, and it’s the designer who brings everything together under one cohesive plan. 

Because it’s impossible to truly understand paper or printing without feeling and seeing it in front of you, we overlapped text with physical paper swatches from past Small Editions projects—leftovers from accidents, make-ready, or overage. The swatches showcase various textures, weights, ink finishes, and printing methods. Some are dented, some are misprinted, some have ink stains, thus echoing the fickleness of book making and the fallibility of paper. The entire edition is printed, collated, and bound by hand. Each book is unique and imperfect by nature.

This title is held in the collections of:
Rhode Island School of Design