U1 – Vom Schutzumschlag zum Marketinginstrument
U1 is the German abbreviation for Umschlag 1 (cover page nr. 1). This book is divided into three parts. In the first part, we explain how the role of the U1 has changed over the years; the design of the U1 now plays an important role in convincing certain target groups to purchase a book. The second part deals with the visual language of the U1, split across different genres, subjects, and visual principles, taking numerous reproductions of book covers as examples. The third part offers concise insight into the design process and technical criteria used in the publishing world, along with a guide about prepress procedures. The book’s layout visually adapts to the theme of each chapter. Although we included examples of mainstream solutions, we focused on powerful covers by displaying them in 1:1 scale.