Starting from this article we will examine how the book cover is born. Its history, the relationship between cover and genre. The necklaces.
Capsae, case (hence the capsule), in Roman times, whose books were actually “encapsulated” scrolls. It was then the container of the first printed sheets in the first incunabula. The small manifesto, as it was considered by publishers in the years ofArt nouveauthe business card with which the book presents itself to those who will read its contents.
Today we take for granted that the cover covers and encloses the text as well as protecting it, while incunabula in the 15th century had no cover, but a protective page that was thrown away after the book had been bound. Today we could not imagine a book without a cover or with an anonymous cover, because it would appear naked without a distinguishing garment.
Who invented the cover?
There was no real inventor, but its use, from its birth to its evolution over time, is the result of a gradual process linked to the diffusion of books and reading to ever wider social strata, to the birth and diffusion of the first libraries. For this reason it has become an element of the book necessary not only to protect it, but also to differentiate the books, giving each one its own dress. A process that began at the end of the eighteenth century also through the enterprising and entrepreneurial work of booksellers.
A distant history therefore, but for reading and books to spread it was necessary to wait until the early twenties of the twentieth century with the editions of cheap books within the reach of many budgets and, to overcome the competition, the volume had to be supported through an ad hoc apparatus: the cover.
Graphic cover
The cover of a book is a small poster and has the purpose of communicating to the observer that there is something interesting for him in that book, he stated Bruno Munariwho worked a lot for the image of the Einaudi publishing house.
To evaluate the impact that Munari’s design work had on the image of culture in Italy, the work for the publisher Einaudi can be taken as an example. Munari created with Max Huber between 1962 and 1972 the graphics of the series Small Library (with the colored square at the top), Nuova Universale (with the red horizontal stripes), Poetry collection (with the verses on a white background on the cover), New Polytechnic (with the central red square), Paperbacks (with the central blue square), Literature, One hundred pages, and works in multiple volumes (History of Italy, Encyclopedia, Italian literature, History of Italian art). Among other highly successful graphic creations, we can remember the New Cultural Library and the Works of Marx-Engels for Editori Riuniti, and two series of essays for Bompiani.
Munari conceived the cover for symbols and encounters of color on black and white.
Bruno Munari covers for the Nuovo Politecnico Einaudi series, designed 1965
Munari covers for Bompiani, 1971-72
Communicative cover
All the covers of all the books should have this purpose, and not only this, but also stand out among the covers of books lined up in the same shop window and in any other shop window. Hence the importance of the back [peccato che non esista una regola se il titolo sul dorso debba partire dall’alto o dal basso – ndr].
But how to communicate with the likely reader? We know that everyone sees what they know, and recognizes what they already know, so it is necessary to establish visual contact with the reader’s memory. Each individual memorizes everything that interests him most and keeps it in memory as a point of reference to broaden his knowledge in that field, to the point that he does not see what does not interest him.
A reader of detective novels does not see technical books on the cultivation of Ginkgo biloba, so the graphic designer must keep this reality in mind when choosing and designing cover images. Just as the labels of mineral water bottles are different from those of wines (and it would be very wrong to make a wine label that resembles those of water) so it is wrong to create a cover for a cybernetics book that recalls those of fiction novels. Love. Each person has in mind shapes and colors from their world of interests, and this is the way to communicate a message.
Furthermore, we add to this that the purpose of the cover, in addition to being noticed by its reader, is to stand out among all the books displayed together in the same showcase. And since all the covers of all the books on display have the same purpose, standing out becomes more difficult. As with street posters. There are periods in which certain colors dominate, such as the red and black of the Bauhaus period, and then a green and blue book is immediately noticeable. In times when all publications are printed in color, it is a black and white book that stands out. While in a strict and classic period with horizontal lines of text, a cover with the title diagonally stands out among the others. Furthermore, the image of the Publishing House must be considered, so the loyal reader will easily find it in the mass of books on display.
If the publisher is of quality rather than quantity, it means that the quality reader also has particular aesthetic habits, knows how to distinguish classic or modern typographical characters and this reader must not be shown a cover with vulgar and poorly arranged characters, banal images and poorly chosen colors, because the reader would not recognize it. For the mass, popular publisher, the refinements of the elitist one are not suited and have such a distribution network that the book will also be in the only stationery-emporium in Panarea and will sell the same with covers that are not too aesthetically pleasing.
summing up
Changes follow the eras. The most significant are those close to us that have revolutionized tastes and changed fashion.
At the dawn of the twentieth century, with the enormous development of publishing and the art of binding, even covers were covered with friezes and naturalistic subjects in the curvilinear style typical of Art Nouveau; but from the 1920s the synthetic geometries and bright colors of Art Déco became established. Geometric stylization takes over and some of the first Art Deco bindings eliminate the lettering, while others insert modern-style characters into the overall composition. The graphic characters, in addition to becoming linear and geometric, appear more legible and lose any decorative cadence.
The use of the photographic image gains ground and becomes the most effective means of expression, sometimes consistent with the content, other times less so.
above: Text-only covers, with little advertising – below: Text that uses the help of the decorative figure which sometimes dominates and constitutes an element of appeal.
The text is drawn and follows the image. The cover graphics forget the importance of the title compared to the drawing.
The cover becomes an entire illustration. The text sometimes dominates and sometimes becomes smaller to let the figure predominate. It acquires coquetry but the generalization of the shape diminishes its suggestive value.
A form of cover that has caught on. It reproduces documentary photographs that interest the observer, recalling him to the subject of the book.
In the next article we will focus on the history of the cover illustration and tell the funny story of a particular case, that of the illiterate publisher. Its simple but attractive covers relied on a flat, genre-identifying background color and a large, all-caps title.
