Sara Vaz, Marco Balesteros

jury statement

★
Portugal /// Portugal
★

Here we have an experimental approach to layout, subject matter and school. At first glance, however, it seems fairly conventional – a hardback book with 320 pages and a bookmark ribbon. The bright red cover and endpapers provide a contrast to the black-and-white printing of the inside pages, just as their thin transparent paper contrasts with the hard cover. The choice of paper creates a pleasant tactile experience that makes you want to hold the book and flip through it again and again. But back to that experimental approach: Provisional School for Nothing—Exercise of Imagination is an intriguing and thought-provoking volume that explores the concept of school, its potential and its boundaries. The result of a collaboration between various contributors, this book delves into what it means to create a provisional and ever evolving school. It presents a collection of conversations, notes and ideas about what a school can truly be.

This ambitious project features an original typographic concept that initially seems chaotic, but then reveals the book to be a performative work that encourages collective reading. This concept challenges the traditional solitary nature of reading by inviting shared interaction. With its layout, the book subverts conventional book consumption, allowing readers to engage with the material collaboratively. Design and content work together to create a truly unique experience.