We are delighted to announce that this year we have been nominated for three of the prestigious British Book Design and Production Awards. On the 8th of November, the opulent grand hall of the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in West London will welcome the British book world to celebrate the best craftsmanship and design the country has to offer.
As a British heritage fine art publishing house, our books are exclusively custom made for each client using high quality innovative materials and old world techniques, often by hand. We are therefore honoured to be nominated for such a prestigious industry award which recognises the importance of quality of the kind we strive to achieve.
‘Humphrey Ocean RA’, nominated for the Art & Architecture Monograph Award
For over fifty years Humphrey Ocean has continued to delight and surprise the art world with his paintings, prints and sculptures that depict the simplicity of life with British charm. Working one-on-one with Humphrey in his studio, we created his first artist’s monograph. This book is filled with Hurtwood hallmarks of quality such as Swiss binding and typography printed in a slick black foil blocking.
Read the full story on the monograph here.
‘Varnishing Day: A Moment in Time’, nominated for the Best British Book Award
With the onset of the global pandemic, and for the first time in the history of the Royal Academy of Arts, the Summer Exhibition 2020 was postponed, and, along with it, Varnishing Day. This is traditionally when Academicians would celebrate the start of the show by putting the finishing touches to their work in situ. But now it’s really just a big party!
When in 2020 this celebration was not possible, 100 Academicians instead marked the day (1 June) by producing a work of art to document their thoughts and feelings at such an unprecedented time.
We then compiled these 100 works of art into a collectable portfolio of prints which includes the works of Tracey Emin RA, Yinka Shonibare RA and Grayson Perry RA. For the bespoke bright teal portfolio box, our brilliant art director and designer Billie Temple was commissioned to create a design as special as the work inside. The splash of silkscreen printing in spot gloss UV varnish pays homage to the Varnishing Day theme, and the inside of the box is lined in a soft-hued lilac mohawk paper with ribbons to match.
Read the full case study here. The work is available to purchase on our shop.
‘Rubileo’, a Hurtwood x ThatBook collaboration, nominated for the Best Digital Book Award
ThatBook is an award-winning photographic and creative agency run by LA-based Eszter Matheson, long-term friend and collaborator at Hurtwood, and her photographer partner David. Together they create Hollywood style productions for their clients, capturing a full behind-the-scenes glimpse into their extraordinary lives.
In collaborating with ThatBook, Rubileo tells the story of a birthday party of an American singer, with guests enjoying a rare evening of hedonism against the sun-baked backdrop of Italian vineyards and palazzos. Here we gave permanence to memories and exceptional experiences, turning them into exquisite art object that will be celebrated for generations to come.
Read about our full legacy book offering in our recent blog post and the story of Rubileo on ThatBook’s website.
