What a spectacular, perfectly executed waterless offset printed book this is. The jury was almost unanimously blown away by this book, which in all its simplicity exudes photography. The design is visible, but at the same time is so good that it does not intrude.
Bold decisions have been taken that go against the traditional structure of a book dealing with a historical photo collection: foreword, explanatory notes on the structure and finally the material itself. This is not the case here. As a whole, the book has a classic look, but the cover betrays the contemporary nature of its design, stating only the title, and not the name of the author. As all textual notes and explanations have been placed at back, we can dive straight into the treasure trove. Decisions, perhaps, that do not give the feeling of immediately diving into a book. Rather, before we know it, we are in early twentieth-century Wyoming. The text in the back – printed in silver on black as a poetic reference to the silver salts used in photography – makes reading a great pleasure.
The book feels fairly stiff in the hand owing to the thick boards used for the stylish linen cover, and possibly also to the heavy paper, which gives the sensation of holding authentic photographic paper. And then, to think that this book encompasses less than 1 percent of the original collection. A mouth-watering prospect.