Interview with Carol Hayes

Pressing letterforms into the snow, Carol Hayes continues to make a beauty mark on book covers with her innovative design of The Zoo in Winter: Selected Poems by Polina Barskova (Melville House, Feb 2011). Carol has designed work for numerous magazines and book publishers, chiefly Melville, approaching each project with freshness and clarity. She also co-authored the book, Taking Things Seriously: 75 Objects with Unexpected Significance (Princeton Architectural Press, 2007) with Joshua Glenn and continues to experiment with photography, sculpture and design; reaffirming that everything is possible. It was great to exchange thoughts with her:

How did you come up with the concept for The Zoo in Winter?

I had been looking at some photos of wintery landscapes, and came across an image of a person walking through snow in a field. They left behind a trail of footprints and I guess that triggered the idea to set up a photograph using the title type to make an impression in snow, similar to the footprints. The other comp I designed used a photo of a cut paper sculpture by Jen Stark which was more abstract and vivid and had a much different feeling than the snow.

What do you like about photographing and arranging real objects?

I think I’m more of a 3-D person than a 2-D person. It took me a while to realize this but over the past couple of years it has become clear. Arranging or setting up still lifes for photos are tangible and sculptural and ultimately more satisfying to me than moving type around on a pre-existing image. Incorporating the typography into the photo usually feels like the most simple and concise solution. Of course, it’s not always possible to go in that direction. 

I love how you designed a poster, hung it in a shop window and then photographed it for the cover of Stuffed & Starved (Melville). Do you try to observe the way boot soles mark imprints in the snow or how a discount sign looks in a supermarket and then recreate that language into design?

For me, the content of the book (or the title) usually determines the concept. As I’ve described above, for The Zoo in Winter, I had already been researching imagery depicting winter scenes, mostly because of the title. Since Stuffed & Starved is about global food systems—from farming to consumers—it made sense to use a supermarket sign as the cover. The aesthetic of that type of window signage is usually very bold and urgent which felt appropriate for the subject matter.

 

There’s something very simple, but elegant about your work. Do you intentionally experiment with typography while maintaining a certain restraint?

I’ve always been a firm believer in simplicity. I think simple solutions can have complexity without being complicated. I went to see the Balenciaga exhibition at the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute recently and on one of the description cards was a quote by the great former editor of Harper’s Bazaar, Carmel Snow. In reference to Balenciaga’s work she states, “Nothing is so mysterious as simplicity.” I believe this to be true. I also think simple type is experimental.

What direction do you hope book design will go in the future?

I was in a bookstore the other day and it was very crowded, which made me feel optimistic about the future of books and book design in general. It’s a format that works and does not rely on external technology to function (except the person reading it). People still buy and read books in print. Obviously tablet technology (Kindle, iPad, etc.) has dramatically changed the publishing world. What that means for book design, I’m not sure. Maybe it means adding bells and whistles like animations or videos or some interactive elements like hyperlinks that take you to various websites. Maybe each book will have several different covers the buyer can choose from. Perhaps publishers will start selling ad space like magazines are doing on the iPad. Or, maybe when the dust settles, the industry will conclude that people just want the information as quickly and simply as possible without the extraneous ballyhoo.