Taiwan letterpress printing guide wins German book design award

Taipei, March 13 (CNA) An illustrated book on Taiwan's letterpress printing culture has received an "honorary appreciation" award in an annual German international book design competition, according to the Taipei Book Fair Foundation (TBFF).

Kao Peng-hsiang (高鵬翔), who designed and authored the "Visual Guide to Taiwan Letterpress Printing," received the honor Thursday in this year's Best Book Design from All Over the World competition, organized by Stiftung Buchkunst, the TBFF said in a news release.

The TBFF said the German award, which has a history of nearly 100 years, is considered one of the most prestigious honors in global book design.

Each year it presents 14 prizes, including one Goldene Letter (Golden Type), one gold, two silver, five bronze and five honorary appreciation awards.

Kao's book was selected from 570 entries across 33 countries this year.

The "Visual Guide to Taiwan Letterpress Printing" uses an open-spine design, with a cover that unfolds into a full image showing type casting, sorting, typesetting and printing, and it presents a cohesive visual language that earned praise from the jury, the TBFF said.

Kao spent five years visiting Taiwan's type foundries and printing shops and documented their techniques, producing hundreds of detailed hand-drawn illustrations of workshops, components and tools that recreate Taiwan's letterpress printing tradition, the foundation said.

The book preserves a disappearing industry, serving not only as a valuable record of a printing culture but also as an encyclopedic work on Taiwan's letterpress printing that combines knowledge and artistry, it said.

Kao's illustrative guide also won a gold medal in this year's Golden Butterfly Awards, organized by the TBFF.

The awards ceremony for the 14 book design winners will be held March 20 at the Leipzig Book Fair in Germany.