Editions:  First Second

The making of the Design, Form, and Chaos by Paul Rand, second edition

Overview• Process

Getting the task: to republish the book by Paul Rand about design and chaos.


The book

Updating book details and the ISBN. Correcting misprints.

Adding the words “second edition” to the title opening and the name of the translator that was unduly omitted in the first edition.

design form and chaos 2017 process 01

The chief typesetter asks to adjust illustration colors to bring them closer to the original. The most different is the gray Pantone: in the first edition it came out dark to the point of being very close to black.

design form and chaos 2017 process 02

Comparing other illustrations to the original and adjusting the CMYK values.


The cover

Having a close look at the original and adjusting the position of the signature on the cover.

design form and chaos 2017 process 03

The dust jacket

Starting to retypeset the dust jacket. At the very least we need to update it to match the new format and maybe even suggest something new.

Here are the two alternatives: to keep the same pictures but adjust them slightly to match the style of studio’s dust jackets or to create a replica of the original.

design form and chaos 2017 process 04
design form and chaos 2017 process 05

Art director: I don’t like either.

Continuing to think.

design form and chaos 2017 process 06

Choosing one of the designs to show.

design form and chaos 2017 process 07

Art director: Not as cool as the graphics. The cover is boring.

Chief typesetter: Let’s try to slightly enlarge what we used to have and create another design with a pattern.

design form and chaos 2017 process 08

Art director: 2.

Hooray! Finalizing the layout and preparing for printing.

design form and chaos 2017 process 09