Frida Folk
Designing information to create a balance between text, image and language translations
WITH TARA BOOKS
Frida Folk is a collection of essays, objects, artwork and photographs featuring the iconic Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Written by German academic Gaby Franger and published by Tara Books, the book contains an unexpected collection of Frida memorabilia from around the world.Working on this book was an exercise in information design, considering the different levels of information that it contained. From styling text-heavy pages to creating photograph-based spreads, my main challenge was to create a layout that would accommodate this variety, and yet unify the book through a consistent visual language.
Another learning that this project brought about was how to design for multilingual editions. The book was to be simultaneously printed in two language versions – English and German – and the layout had to be flexible enough to accommodate the German text without moving around other elements on the page. Having a good understanding of the offset printing process helped me make better design decisions despite these constraints.
Part of the image of the metal frame featured on the cover was embossed to recreate its tactility.
