Paperblanks Celeste Midi Hardback Address Book – 144 Pages

Keep the people who matter close at hand with this Celeste midi hardback address book from Paperblanks, complete with alphabetised thumb-cut tabs.

Venice enchants the eye from first light to last gloaming. We have captured some of the splendid palette of the city with this cover, inspired by a 1600s Italian binding. Our Celeste design embraces the Renaissance value of cultural rebirth by representing an ancient book binding with contemporary bookmaking techniques.

The Story Behind the Design

A Venetian morning is alight with marvels. From sunlight sparkling on water to the startling hues of incomparable architecture, Venice enchants the eye from first light to last gloaming. We have captured some of the splendid daybreak palette of the ancient city with these four striking covers.

Our covers are inspired by a Venetian binding for a Renaissance-era book containing two treatises on colours. The discourses in the book focused on the meaning and application of colours in heraldic motifs and instructions for creating and interpreting coats of arms. Strange subject matter today, but at the time these were popular topics, especially for the ruling classes.

In fact, this particular treaty was originally written by Jean Courtois, the Sicily Herald in service of King Alfonso V of Aragon. King Alfonso (known as “the Magnanimous”) had a well-known connection to the infamous Italo-Spanish House of Borgia, known as Italy’s first mafia family. One can imagine they took their colours and coat of arms quite seriously!

The binding itself was crafted from red morocco leather with fine gold borders and checkers of green, red, blue and brown in the midfield. The checkered pattern can be interpreted as a reference to the coats of arms mentioned in the book’s contents. Though the original design was offered in just one colour combination, we have embraced the Renaissance value of cultural rebirth in our multi-hued contemporary interpretation.

In creating this journal cover we imagined ourselves in the city of Venice and were inspired by the idea of waking up and taking in the beautiful colours of the morning. The heavenly lights of early dawn inspired this Celeste colour combination, and the gold tooling pays homage to the lavishness of Italian Renaissance artistry.

• Original artwork: Binding for The Treatise on Colours
• Era: circa 1600
• Region: Venice, Italy

Product Details

• Size: Midi – 130 × 180 × 20 mm
• Pages: 144 (72 sheets)
• Paper: 120 gsm acid-free cream laid paper
• Cover: Hardback
• Closure: Elastic band
• Binding: Smyth sewn – lies flat and stays durable
• Corners: Rounded
• Pouch: Memento pouch
• Design: Celeste
• Series: Venetian Mornings
• Thumb cut page edges
• 100% recycled binder boards
• Decorative printed cover paper
• Printed on acid-free paper
• Threaded stitching and glue, as needed
• Memento pouch
• Weight: 278 g
• Product code: PB3624-1 | ISBN: 9781439736241

About Paperblanks

Paperblanks works with museums, libraries, galleries and artists around the world to faithfully reproduce remarkable artwork, historic bindings and treasured manuscripts. Every book is made to last, with binder boards crafted from 100% recycled materials, and the back endpaper tells the fascinating story behind the cover design and credits its creators.