Book Design · 2016

The Old Man and the Sea

A complete reinterpretation of Hemingway's novel, designed, illustrated, printed, polished, and hand-bound as a study of endurance, isolation, and humanity's struggle with nature.

Role: Design, illustration, printing, finishing, and hand binding
Context: A self-directed reinterpretation of Ernest Hemingway's novel
Constraints: Find a personal visual language for a familiar classic · Produce every physical component independently
Outcome: A complete hand-bound edition shaped by material wear, fishing-net imagery, and colored-pencil illustration

Project gallery

01 / 17

Low-angle view of a hand-bound book with a weathered blue cover — Final object Low-angle view of the hand-bound book, showing the weathered blue cover and page block

Finished book with a distressed blue cover and white title typography — Final object Finished book with distressed cover texture and white-and-orange title typography

Front and back covers of the hand-bound edition shown together — Final object Front and back covers shown together, highlighting the restrained blue-and-white system

Angled view of the worn blue front cover — Final object Angled view of the front cover and its deliberately worn surface

Plain back cover with a weathered blue finish — Final object Unprinted back cover with the same hand-weathered blue finish

Endpaper spread covered by a blue fishing-net pattern — Interior system Endpaper spread illustrated with a continuous blue fishing-net pattern

Chapter opening with text concentrated on the right page — Interior system Chapter opening with an asymmetric text layout and generous white space

Title spread with introductory text and a small archival photograph — Interior system Title spread pairing the book's introduction with a small archival photograph

Colored-pencil illustration of an old man surrounded by blue waves — Interior system Illustrated spread of the old man surrounded by layered bands of blue sea

Close view of the old man's colored-pencil portrait — Interior system Colored-pencil detail of the old man's face against the ocean illustration

Layered paper marlin illustration on a blue ocean spread — Interior system Layered paper illustration of a marlin set against the colored-pencil sea

Interior text spread showing pages sixteen and seventeen — Interior system Interior text spread showing the book's compact typography and page-number system

Folded page signatures held upright in a vise — Making the book Folded page signatures clamped in a vise before binding

Thread passing through the folded signatures during hand sewing — Making the book Sewing the folded signatures together by hand

Hand piercing sewing holes along a folded spine — Making the book Piercing sewing stations along the folded spine

Printed cover artwork being trimmed with a utility knife — Making the book Trimming the printed cover artwork with a utility knife

Hands polishing a dark sheet of cover material — Making the book Hand-polishing the cover material before final binding

Project notes

About the project

Every part of this edition was completed independently, including the cover, interior system, colored-pencil illustrations, printing, polishing, and hand binding. The weathered cover and fishing-net imagery express endurance, isolation, and the enduring struggle between humanity and nature.

The central challenge was finding an authentic way to reinterpret a classic. Material choices, illustration, and physical construction bring a personal perspective to a familiar story.