A “Sensory Pleasure” Wins Specialty Products Award

Pride In Print Awards Night 2017 media release (Category 7 – Specialty Products)

A “SENSORY PLEASURE” WINS SPECIALTY PRODUCTS AWARD

An 18-month journey of discovery between architect and author, and typographer and designer, has been rewarded with the 2017 Pride In Print Specialty Products Category Award.

The Gentle Hand and The Greedy Eye, entered by Glenfield-based Bookbinding Press 2010 Ltd, was a deeply personal work prepared for architect, artist and academic Dr Rachel Hurst for her PhD dissertation submission.

Special dispensation was needed for the dissertation to be submitted as a book and it was given because the dissertation focused on the tactile feel of particular types of architectural design.

The book is designed to sit in the hand as a tactile object and to satisfy the “greedy eye” with its many illustrations, its varied paper stocks and silky bookmarks in order to make the ordinary act of reading a sensory pleasure.

The Gentle Hand and The Greedy Eye, printed by Press Print and designed by Catherine Griffiths, delivers on every score.

Specialist finishing judge Tim Upton says: “This is a book someone from outside the industry would open and say ‘wow’.

“There are only five copies produced and they include so many different techniques, so many print processes. The cover has foiling, embossing and debossing. The printing is perfect and the binding outstanding.

“Everything is done by hand and it really demonstrates the power of print in such a way that anyone will be impressed by it.

“It showcases craftsmanship.”

Bookbinding Press 2010 Ltd Gary Horsbrough says he was “elated” to receive the award.

“I’ve been a judge for three years and I now know what the expectations are -- to win, it is a great feeling, you just can’t beat it,” he says.

“It was totally different to anything we’ve done. It was totally out there. Each book took a day and a half to make.

“We had a strict guideline and it had to hit those marks and it did.”

Mr Horsbrough says his firm sees itself as having a definitive point of difference and will be looking to capitalise further on this achievement.

“We are strategically doing other things in the background.

“It was a unique job, but since then, we’ve actually got other work coming from our client because this job has already won quite a few awards around the world. It has done really well.

“This particular customer has decided this week to quote 100, 200 and 300 to be done here in New Zealand!”

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