Best Book Design 2023

The contest visual identity: Kostiantyn Martsenkivskiy, Hanna Harnaha

In 2023, the Best Book Design Contest was held for the eight time by the International Book Arsenal Festival in cooperation with Goethe-Institut Ukraine. The “Best Book Design 2023” contest took place with the financial support of the German State Ministry for Culture and the Media.

A total of 186 books were submitted to the Contest. Books that were published from January to November 2023 by Ukrainian publishers were accepted to participate in the Contest.

JURY

17085

16988

16993

16995

16997

17001

16999

17003

NOMINATION

GRAND PRIX

This year’s Grand Prix winning book is also the Text Book Nomination winning book. The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut, the publication concept, cover design and illustrations by Maria Havrysh and Volodymyr Havrysh. Book design and layout by Volodymyr Havrysh. The Babylon Library Publishing House.

 

Art Book Nomination

Jury members decided to reinterpret the Visual Book Nomination as the Art Book Nomination, since, just as in previous years, it is dominated by art publications, albums, photo books, and catalogues. In this Nomination the winner is NIKIFOR by Myroslava Mudrak  published by RODOVID Publishing House and Ukrainian Museum in New York.

1. Author
   Myroslava Mudrak
2. Visual design
   Volodymyr Havrysh
3. Published by
   RODOVID Publishing House and Ukrainian Museum in New York

Utility Book Nomination

The winner in the Utility Book Nomination is the Russian Colonialism by Maksym Eristavi published by ist publishing. Art director — Sergiy Maidukov, illustrations by Sergiy Maidukov, Alisa Gots, Nikita Kravtsov, Nataliia Kozeko, Danylo Shtangeev, Natasha Steshenko, Ave Libertatemaveamor.

1. Author
   Maksym Eristavi
2. Аrt-direction 
   Sergiy Maidukov
3. Illustrations
   Sergiy Maidukov, Alisa Gots, Nikita Kravtsov, Nataliia Kozeko, Danylo Shtangeev, Natasha Steshenko, Ave Libertatemaveamor
4. Design and layout 
   Ostap Yashchuk
5. Published by
   ist publishing

Visual Storytelling Nomination

The jury also decided to expand the Kids Book Nomination to the Visual Storytelling Nomination. It allows including any genre of publications that, just like kids books, use visual means to tell the story. The winner in the Visual Storytelling is the Blackout. Chronicles of Our Life During Russia’s War Against Ukraine by seri/graph, Anya Ivanenko and Zhenya Polosina. 

1. Visual design
   Seri/graph, Anya Ivanenko and Zhenya Polosina
2. Published by
   Yakaboo publising

Experiment Nomination

Yelyzaveta Berestova won the Experiment Nomination with her self-published When War Is Coming Home book.

1. Visual design
   Yelyzaveta Berestova
2. Published by
   self-published

Best Book Design 2023 Contest  Shortlists:

Номінація «Текстова книга»:

• «Терор з повітря», Петер Слотердайк. Дизайн та верстка — Володимир Гавриш, ist publishing.
• «Україна: 50 символів боротьби», Юрій Марченко, Тетяна Капустинська, Дар’я Якуніна, Катерина Іголкіна, Євген Скляренко. Концепція, дизайн обкладинки, дизайн та верстка — Валерія Городчаніна, ілюстрації — Марія Кінович, Platfor.ma, Бланк-Прес.

Art Book Nomination:

• Janet Sobel: Wartime by Peter Doroshenko, Alisa Lozhkina.Design by Volodymyr Havrysh, RODOVID Publishing House, Ukrainian Museum in New York.
• Bolnichka by Vladyslav Krasnoshchok. Design by Calin Kruse, editor — Serhii Lebedynskyi. Museum of Kharkiv School of Photography (MOKSOP).
• Flooding by Nikita Kadan and Aliona Karavai, book design and layout by Yaroslava Kovalchuk, Asortymentna kimnata.
• Our Years, Our Words, Our Losses, Our Searches, Our Us (a catalogue for the Jam Factory exhibition), authors and compilers: Borys Filonenko, Kateryna Iakovlenko, Natalia Matsenko. Design, layout, concept — Katya Drozd, ist publishing.

Utility Book Nomination:

• More Than Service by Artur Lupashko. Publication concept by Artur Lupashko and Tetiana Kostina. Cover design and layout by Daria Stetsenko, book design by Tetiana Kostina and Daria Stetsenko, punkt publishing.

Visual Storytelling Nomination:

• A Travel Book. Independent by Iryna Taranenko. Design by Marta Leshak. Knygolove Publishing House.
• Silence! The Rehearsal Is On by Viktor Martyniuk. Design — Oksana Drachkovska, Old Lion Publishing House.

Experiment Nomination:

• Hometown by Ruslana Kliuchko, design — Ruslana Kliuchko, self-published.
• Dirt 1929 by Petro Holota, design, concept, illustration idea, and layout by Galya Vergeles. AI programming by Vlad Frolov. Butsia Self-Publishing Initiative.

Best Book Design 2023 Special Honours

• The jury’s special award for developing indie publishing goes to RISODENTSIA.
• The jury’s special award for the poetry book design goes to Diskursus Publishing House and Yakomoga book by Max Lyzhov. Design by Maryna Dyachenko, Diskursus Publishing House.
• The jury’s special award for the direction that the design approach can lead to goes to The Non-Canon Canon Series by Vikhola Publishing House. Covers by Volodymyr Havrysh, layout by Serhii Zadvornyi, art editor — Victoria Shelest. Vikhola Publishing House.
• Treasures of the Swedish archives by Maryna Trattner are awarded with the jury’s special award for decent artistic processing of archival materials. Cover and layout by Oleksiy Chekal. Illustrations by Natalia Pavlusenko, FOP Maksymovska Yu. A.
• The jury’s special award for developing the periodicalsTelegraf. WILL, design by Hlib Kaporikov and Yevhenia Lysenko, Projector publishingTelegraf. Creativity of the Brave, design by Hlib Kaporikov, Anastasia Shyshenok, Yulia Stroi, Roksana Chychuk, and Veronika Sokol, Projector publishing.

All photos on this page by Oleksandr Popenko

The winner of the Grand Prix will receive the main prize of the Contest, the iconic statuette. Finalists and winners of the Contest will represent Ukrainian book design in the “Best Book Design from All over the World” competition organised by the German Buchkunst Foundation. The winning books will also be exhibited at international book fairs in Leipzig and Frankfurt.

The Buchkunst Foundation will invite the author of the most significant contribution to the design of the Grand Prix winning book on a professional trip to Germany in 2024. Publishers whose editions won the contest and winners of special awards will receive tickets to the Frankfurt Book Fair and take part in professional events at the fair.

All publications submitted to the Contest that did not receive awards or special honours will be donated to libraries jointly with PEN Ukraine.

The International Book Arsenal Festival team and Goethe-Institut Ukraine would like to thank the Frankfurt Book Fair and the Buchkunst Foundation for their support and cooperation in organising and holding the Contest.

• Media partners: Telegraf.Design та Читомо
• The hospitality partner — BURSA.

The “Best Book Design 2023” contest takes place with the financial support of the German State Ministry for Culture and the Media.