|
Renowned Design Publishers
BY
Bianca Zen
|
page
1
Exclusive Highlight on TAXI Design Network
Interview with Laurence King from Laurence King Publishing
TAXI >>It's coming to a year since the announcement of your partnership for distribution with Chronicle Books. How has that impacted on LKP?
Laurence King >> It has had a quite major impact. We are trying to create a global English-language brand for books on design, architecture and art and the relationship with Chronicle is a major step towards this as the books come out under our imprint. Previously we had to sell the US rights of our titles to American publishers, so that our list was to some extent determined by what we thought that they would buy. Now we can determine what we publish in the US ourselves, which makes it easier for us to determine our list in the way we want to.
TAXI >>There must be several book requests coming in from everywhere all the time. What qualities determine whether a project gets accepted, or put into the KIV bin? Or not get considered at all?
Laurence King >> We always welcome book ideas, so all are considered. We look for books which have something new to say about subjects our readers would be interested in. It helps too if the approach is original.
TAXI >>Some books, like Look At This, Business Cards and Wallpaper, are about things which people don't usually pay much attention to, such as brochures and wallpaper. On the other end of the spectrum, LKP recently published the uber-cool VJ chronograph featuring more than 128 VJs around the world. How does this in any way reflect LKP's philosophy?
Laurence King >> They come out of the same philosophy. We realised that the business card was a medium that had been overlooked but designers were doing very interesting things with. The author and designers’ approach was original. They weren’t just showing exciting business cards, but they were also bringing an exciting design approach to the subject. It sold very well. Similarly, designers are getting much more interested in pattern and are now designing wallpapers, so that was an exciting subject which would once have been dull. VJ is a book on a subject no one had published an illustrated book on at all, but is now growing to be a global phenomenon, so we thought that it would be good to publish a book on this subject too.
TAXI >>As one of our revered Design Leaders, what do you think are the qualities that distinguish LKP from the rest of the publishing world?
Laurence King >> I like to think that we take risks with what we publish, so that we are generally offering something new. We also take a lot of trouble to produce the books as well as we can, whether it be finding the right authors and designers, or printing the book using materials which make it more fun and bring out its real importance.
TAXI >>You've worked with some of the biggest names in the industry, from Adrian Shaughnessy to David Carson. Which projects would LKP be looking at to work on in 2007?
Laurence King >> There’s a lot so that (redundant) it is hard to know where to start. In the Spring we are doing the first book on Japanese graffiti, Rackgaki, which includes an amazing DVD showing the artists at work. We also have a book on restaurant graphics because we thought it’s interesting to show how the identities of restaurants are shaped as much by what a graphic designer does as what the interior designer does. ‘New Shoes’ will be the only book on contemporary shoe designers, feeding a fairly general obsession. And there will be a lot else.
TAXI >>Despite the neat categorization, your publications run the gamut from manga to skateboard stickers to beauty pageants. Doesn't such diversity get a little mind-boggling?
Laurence King >> I think that the diversity makes our work here exciting. We publish across the whole area of the creative arts, so that there is a thread running through it. But within our parameters, I would like our list to become more adventurous, more diverse, not less so.
TAXI >>What is the WORD, which you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Laurence King >> It is barely original to say it, but I think that the whole green issue is going to become more and more important, so that it ceases to be a single issue but gets broken down into its constituent parts and is investigated in ways which are both more effective and more playful.
Exclusive Highlight on TAXI Design Network
Interview with Robert Klanten from Die Gestalten Verlag (dgv)
Robert Klanten >> We were looking for submissions that were a) somehow dealing with the subject of tsunami relief or human compassion and b) had a general quality.
TAXI >>It's coming to 2 years since that project. Given the wildly enthusiastic response for Designed To Help, are there any plans for a similar one to take place, and what will the concept or theme be like this time?
Robert Klanten >> I think social awareness is an issue and creative people and designers are very much aware of this. NGOs and companies can create a lot of momentum for a good cause. We have been working on a social project initiated by Peter Maffay called ‘Encounters – An Alliance for Children’ which includes patrons like Angela Merkel, Desmond Tutu, Hamid Karzai, Victor Yushtchenko and Shimon Peres. We are proud with the success of the project in raising money and awareness for children in need. We hope to launch another social charity project this year.
TAXI >>Which artists would dgv be looking at to collaborate with in 2007?
Robert Klanten >> I have the golden rule not to brag about collaborations before the ink has dried on the deal.
TAXI >>Who do you think currently has the recognizable style that dgv is looking for, which is both contemporary and sophisticated?
Robert Klanten >> It is a very general question but I think that people from various disciplines are doing interesting things, like Maarten Baas, Jurgen Bey, Koen Hauser, Oz Gemeos (spelling), Mi-Zo and Jaime Hayon.
TAXI >>How has dgv’s role as a publishing doyen evolved over the past decade? - What do you think are the hot trends for 2007?
Robert Klanten >> If I thought something remarkable was going to take off in 2007 (which I think will happen), I will be careful to keep it to myself until the right moment. ;)
TAXI >>What is the WORD, which you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Robert Klanten >> a) Space b) Personal
Exclusive Highlight on TAXI Design Network
Interview with Laurence Ng from International Designers Network (IdN)
longer restrained by the tools that they are using, and the publication quickly adopted the view of reporting the best in graphic design rather than focusing on the technical aspects of the trade.
TAXI >> What is your perspective on the state of market 15 years ago vs. now in terms of appreciation for graphic design?
Laurence Ng >> There was no such thing as graphic design or at least what we think of as graphic design today 15 years ago. Back then desktop publishing was a trade, and our company was also practising the trade of colour separations and output. We believe that the appreciation of graphic design came when designers started to realise that there is a creative and artistic aspect to their work. Today, however, I think it’s hard for even graphic designers themselves to draw the line between graphic design and art.
TAXI >> Creating a design magazine reaches a very niche target readership. What were some of the key challenges IDN faced during its early stages of publication?
Laurence Ng >> Distribution was, and has always been, a key challenge. Reaching a unique market means reaching them in the most unusual corner of the world. In addition to that, we have to stay ahead of trends and strike a balance between reaching a very niche market and a more general one.
TAXI >> How does IdN magazine determine its circulation count internationally and what efforts have been made to ensure readers continue to subscribe to IDN magazine?
Laurence Ng >> We ensure that we provide readers with the latest design news yet, at the same time, stay ahead of trends. Unlike other Internet magazines, we devote a lot of attention to the print and production process.
TAXI >> As an active organizer of various design-related events such as DesignEDGE, what are some of the events we can look forward to in the coming year?
Laurence Ng >> This year is our 15th anniversary and in celebration of it, we will organize conferences and publish our biggest book to date, not only to look back at the past 15 years of the design scene and IdN, but also to offer readers a glimpse of the future design world. In addition to that, we would want to involve our readers in more capacity, in the editorial and production of our publications. To that end, we will be hosting design community websites, competitions... in other words, more channels for readers and the design community to express their voices.
TAXI >> In IdN’s effort to be a platform unifying designers globally, it has recently launched a Spanish edition of IdN magazine. What are the differences can we expect from the Spanish edition?
Laurence Ng >> We are still working on the Spanish edition, hopefully it would be out in the near future. Currently IdN is available in three languages — English, Japanese and Chinese — and in six editions: International, Asia-Pacific, Australia/New Zealand, Hong Kong/China, Taiwan and Japan.
TAXI >> IdN magazine has established itself as a publication true to its initials as an International Designers’ Network. Where you foresee IdN magazine in the next 15 years?
Laurence Ng >> The design community is growing at a rapid rate. People who are not in the design field are more design-conscious as well. In the next 15 years, we see ourselves collaborating with a lot more designers in producing our magazine, which also encompasses content that might not be traditionally thought of as art or design.
TAXI >> As an established and renowned design publisher, what is the potential in new content you would look out for and what criteria would you have before you decide to publish a book under IdN?
Laurence Ng >> We see every book we publish as collaboration. We don’t impose a standard criteria on the content or art direction of the book. If we see a good project, we will try to collaborate with the author to improve on the art direction, packaging and/or content of the project. Of course, there are also books that we edit and design ourselves.
TAXI >> Which WORD do you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Laurence Ng >> Restraint.
© 2003 - 2007 by TAXI Design Network. All rights reserved.
Interview with Laurence King from Laurence King Publishing
 | TAXI >> Hi Laurence King. It's been a couple of months since you moved. How's the new office like now?
Laurence King >> The new office works very well. We used to be in a five-storey London house, so it was difficult for everyone to be able to communicate with each other. We are now all on one floor in a much more modern office, which works much better. TAXI >>Your MySpace describes you as an 18-year old London male. What do you do in your free time to feed that excess energy and verve? Laurence King >> I wish I was an 18 year-old London male. But this 51 year-old London male spends his free time doing much the same as everyone else — seeing friends and going to films, plays and exhibitions and reading. |
TAXI >>It's coming to a year since the announcement of your partnership for distribution with Chronicle Books. How has that impacted on LKP?
Laurence King >> It has had a quite major impact. We are trying to create a global English-language brand for books on design, architecture and art and the relationship with Chronicle is a major step towards this as the books come out under our imprint. Previously we had to sell the US rights of our titles to American publishers, so that our list was to some extent determined by what we thought that they would buy. Now we can determine what we publish in the US ourselves, which makes it easier for us to determine our list in the way we want to.
TAXI >>There must be several book requests coming in from everywhere all the time. What qualities determine whether a project gets accepted, or put into the KIV bin? Or not get considered at all?
Laurence King >> We always welcome book ideas, so all are considered. We look for books which have something new to say about subjects our readers would be interested in. It helps too if the approach is original.
TAXI >>Some books, like Look At This, Business Cards and Wallpaper, are about things which people don't usually pay much attention to, such as brochures and wallpaper. On the other end of the spectrum, LKP recently published the uber-cool VJ chronograph featuring more than 128 VJs around the world. How does this in any way reflect LKP's philosophy?
Laurence King >> They come out of the same philosophy. We realised that the business card was a medium that had been overlooked but designers were doing very interesting things with. The author and designers’ approach was original. They weren’t just showing exciting business cards, but they were also bringing an exciting design approach to the subject. It sold very well. Similarly, designers are getting much more interested in pattern and are now designing wallpapers, so that was an exciting subject which would once have been dull. VJ is a book on a subject no one had published an illustrated book on at all, but is now growing to be a global phenomenon, so we thought that it would be good to publish a book on this subject too.
TAXI >>As one of our revered Design Leaders, what do you think are the qualities that distinguish LKP from the rest of the publishing world?
Laurence King >> I like to think that we take risks with what we publish, so that we are generally offering something new. We also take a lot of trouble to produce the books as well as we can, whether it be finding the right authors and designers, or printing the book using materials which make it more fun and bring out its real importance.
TAXI >>You've worked with some of the biggest names in the industry, from Adrian Shaughnessy to David Carson. Which projects would LKP be looking at to work on in 2007?
Laurence King >> There’s a lot so that (redundant) it is hard to know where to start. In the Spring we are doing the first book on Japanese graffiti, Rackgaki, which includes an amazing DVD showing the artists at work. We also have a book on restaurant graphics because we thought it’s interesting to show how the identities of restaurants are shaped as much by what a graphic designer does as what the interior designer does. ‘New Shoes’ will be the only book on contemporary shoe designers, feeding a fairly general obsession. And there will be a lot else.
TAXI >>Despite the neat categorization, your publications run the gamut from manga to skateboard stickers to beauty pageants. Doesn't such diversity get a little mind-boggling?
Laurence King >> I think that the diversity makes our work here exciting. We publish across the whole area of the creative arts, so that there is a thread running through it. But within our parameters, I would like our list to become more adventurous, more diverse, not less so.
TAXI >>What is the WORD, which you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Laurence King >> It is barely original to say it, but I think that the whole green issue is going to become more and more important, so that it ceases to be a single issue but gets broken down into its constituent parts and is investigated in ways which are both more effective and more playful.
Exclusive Highlight on TAXI Design Network
Interview with Robert Klanten from Die Gestalten Verlag (dgv)
 | TAXI >>You described yourself as "A design publisher that has a sense of humour", and that the reason for dgv's success is due to the fact that you guys see yourselves differently. How important has that trait been to dgv's philosophy?
Robert Klanten >> I think our approach is different, as we are born-and-bred designers that went into publishing, rather than coffee table publishers with a design twist. At the time we started, there was no media on the market that covered new school graphic design and visual culture. Design publications were made for people who stopped being creative; not for those still hungry. TAXI >>dgv and UK designers iLovedust have collaborated on Designed To Help, a charity project supporting international charity organization CARE. What were the criteria of submission that you guys were looking for? |
Robert Klanten >> We were looking for submissions that were a) somehow dealing with the subject of tsunami relief or human compassion and b) had a general quality.
TAXI >>It's coming to 2 years since that project. Given the wildly enthusiastic response for Designed To Help, are there any plans for a similar one to take place, and what will the concept or theme be like this time?
Robert Klanten >> I think social awareness is an issue and creative people and designers are very much aware of this. NGOs and companies can create a lot of momentum for a good cause. We have been working on a social project initiated by Peter Maffay called ‘Encounters – An Alliance for Children’ which includes patrons like Angela Merkel, Desmond Tutu, Hamid Karzai, Victor Yushtchenko and Shimon Peres. We are proud with the success of the project in raising money and awareness for children in need. We hope to launch another social charity project this year.
TAXI >>Which artists would dgv be looking at to collaborate with in 2007?
Robert Klanten >> I have the golden rule not to brag about collaborations before the ink has dried on the deal.
TAXI >>Who do you think currently has the recognizable style that dgv is looking for, which is both contemporary and sophisticated?
Robert Klanten >> It is a very general question but I think that people from various disciplines are doing interesting things, like Maarten Baas, Jurgen Bey, Koen Hauser, Oz Gemeos (spelling), Mi-Zo and Jaime Hayon.
TAXI >>How has dgv’s role as a publishing doyen evolved over the past decade? - What do you think are the hot trends for 2007?
Robert Klanten >> If I thought something remarkable was going to take off in 2007 (which I think will happen), I will be careful to keep it to myself until the right moment. ;)
TAXI >>What is the WORD, which you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Robert Klanten >> a) Space b) Personal
Exclusive Highlight on TAXI Design Network
Interview with Laurence Ng from International Designers Network (IdN)
 | TAXI >>IdN magazine celebrates its 15th year in publication this year. Could you share with us the history of IDN; how it all started and what inspired the publication of a graphic design magazine?
Laurence Ng >> 15 years ago, the magazine was focusing a lot more on desktop publishing, around the time Adobe Photoshop made its first appearance. Topics in the magazine revolved around output techniques, colour separations, proofing, workflow management.Back then the magazine only touched on aspects of graphic design, as the market was not ready to absorb a magazine that was entirely devoted to the artistic aspect of graphic design. We noticed that the content of the magazine reached a very specific audience, and in a way, the content of the magazine evolved in a great deal with the maturing of the graphic design industry. Designers are no |
TAXI >> What is your perspective on the state of market 15 years ago vs. now in terms of appreciation for graphic design?
Laurence Ng >> There was no such thing as graphic design or at least what we think of as graphic design today 15 years ago. Back then desktop publishing was a trade, and our company was also practising the trade of colour separations and output. We believe that the appreciation of graphic design came when designers started to realise that there is a creative and artistic aspect to their work. Today, however, I think it’s hard for even graphic designers themselves to draw the line between graphic design and art.
TAXI >> Creating a design magazine reaches a very niche target readership. What were some of the key challenges IDN faced during its early stages of publication?
Laurence Ng >> Distribution was, and has always been, a key challenge. Reaching a unique market means reaching them in the most unusual corner of the world. In addition to that, we have to stay ahead of trends and strike a balance between reaching a very niche market and a more general one.
TAXI >> How does IdN magazine determine its circulation count internationally and what efforts have been made to ensure readers continue to subscribe to IDN magazine?
Laurence Ng >> We ensure that we provide readers with the latest design news yet, at the same time, stay ahead of trends. Unlike other Internet magazines, we devote a lot of attention to the print and production process.
TAXI >> As an active organizer of various design-related events such as DesignEDGE, what are some of the events we can look forward to in the coming year?
Laurence Ng >> This year is our 15th anniversary and in celebration of it, we will organize conferences and publish our biggest book to date, not only to look back at the past 15 years of the design scene and IdN, but also to offer readers a glimpse of the future design world. In addition to that, we would want to involve our readers in more capacity, in the editorial and production of our publications. To that end, we will be hosting design community websites, competitions... in other words, more channels for readers and the design community to express their voices.
TAXI >> In IdN’s effort to be a platform unifying designers globally, it has recently launched a Spanish edition of IdN magazine. What are the differences can we expect from the Spanish edition?
Laurence Ng >> We are still working on the Spanish edition, hopefully it would be out in the near future. Currently IdN is available in three languages — English, Japanese and Chinese — and in six editions: International, Asia-Pacific, Australia/New Zealand, Hong Kong/China, Taiwan and Japan.
TAXI >> IdN magazine has established itself as a publication true to its initials as an International Designers’ Network. Where you foresee IdN magazine in the next 15 years?
Laurence Ng >> The design community is growing at a rapid rate. People who are not in the design field are more design-conscious as well. In the next 15 years, we see ourselves collaborating with a lot more designers in producing our magazine, which also encompasses content that might not be traditionally thought of as art or design.
TAXI >> As an established and renowned design publisher, what is the potential in new content you would look out for and what criteria would you have before you decide to publish a book under IdN?
Laurence Ng >> We see every book we publish as collaboration. We don’t impose a standard criteria on the content or art direction of the book. If we see a good project, we will try to collaborate with the author to improve on the art direction, packaging and/or content of the project. Of course, there are also books that we edit and design ourselves.
TAXI >> Which WORD do you think would reside and reverberate in the design world for the next 10 years?
Laurence Ng >> Restraint.
© 2003 - 2007 by TAXI Design Network. All rights reserved.