Behind the Books was an exhibition of the Most Beautiful Swiss Books 2018 in London. It was hosted by Mathias Clottu and me with a scenography by Sanchez Benton architects. It took place from 31 January to 13 February 2020 at Tenderbooks.
The Most Beautiful Swiss Books competition was established to promote and reward the best of book design in Switzerland at the behest of the famous typographer and designer Jan Tschichold in 1943. The Swiss Federal Office of Culture organises it on an annual basis. Its purpose is to recognise excellence in the field of book design and production, as well as drawing attention to the array of remarkable and contemporary books by Swiss designers, printers and publishers.
Behind the Books was kindly supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture, the Swiss Embassy in London and Pro Helvetia.
On 11 February 2020, Rory McGrath and Jonas Voegeli joined us for a talk at the Swiss Church in London.
Rory McGrath is a member of the jury of the The Most Beautiful Swiss Books competition. He co-founded Studio OK-RM in 2008 and the InOtherWords imprint in 2015. He shared insights as a jury member, book designer and publisher. Jonas Voegeli is a Swiss graphic designer. He is the recipient of the 2018 Jan Tschichold Award for outstanding achievements in book design. He presented a selection of books designed during his career.