Part of a wider piece of artwork centred around an FM radio station, the Free Thought FM book addresses a diverse range of topics to which order and consistency have been brought through careful and considered design and substrate selection.
Part of a wider piece of artwork centred around an FM radio station, the Free Thought FM book addresses a diverse range of topics to which order and consistency have been brought through careful and considered design and substrate selection.
Designed using Cyclus Offset
Introducing Free Thought FM
Free Thought FM is an artwork developed by artist Garrett Phelan that talks about the idea of ‘free thought’. At its core is Free Thought FM, a radio station licensed for just 30 days and hosted by the artist.
The station provided an open forum where free thinkers and members of the public could join Garrett and explore issues primarily around class inequality and access to education in Dublin. The station broadcast live from the Douglas Hyde Gallery in Trinity College, Dublin.
The Free Thought FM live broadcast ran from 25 March until 23 April, 2019, on 105.2 fm (greater Dublin area only), and nationally/internationally online.
The Free Thought FM Book
Dublin-based design studio Unthink were commissioned by Garrett to capture the ideas, concerns and solutions relating to access to education and class inequality in Ireland that arose during the exhibition. More than a project archive, the Free Thought FM book is intended to be a manual for practitioners and interested parties as they explore the subject of education and class.
Documentary photography, academic essays and insightful diagrams populate the pages. Inspired by the pragmatic, manual-like nature of the book, Unthink selected a grotesque typeface with a slight calligraphic edge to inject an idiosyncratic charm. A limited colour palette brings order and consistency to the diverse content.
The Paper Choice
The print substrate was also important, as Noelle Cooper of Unthink explains;
To reinforce the utilitarian aesthetic we were hoping to achieve, we needed a tactile, uncoated paper. Jean Knowles from Antalis Dublin was very helpful when it came to choosing papers and provided us with a variety of dummies to help us in the decision-making process.
Noelle Cooper of UnthinkCover: 2.5 mm grey board covered in Cyclus Offset FSC 100% Recycled, 135 gsm
End papers: Cyclus Offset FSC 100% Recycled, 170 gsm
Text: Cyclus Offset FSC 100% Recycled, 115 gsm
The Technique
The book was printed lithographically using a 4-colour press. The cover was matt laminated for durability as the book was to be hand-delivered to every politician within the education sector of the Irish government.
The Result
Noelle says, “The client was extremely happy with the book – they loved the quality and tactility of the stock, and especially the off-white tonal quality of the interior.”
For Noelle, it was a very satisfying project to be a part of: “I love the challenge of interpreting a client’s aspirations for a complex subject such as this, especially here in Ireland within the education sector. I love using typography and visual hierarchy to achieve a functional and aesthetically unique outcome. Every page is a new composition and is highly considered. Choosing the right paper adds a tremendous level of detail to the overall appearance and tactility of the product/book."
Product Information
Cyclus Offset:
Cyclus is a strong and historic brand of natural shade papers offering a large range of printing possibilities. It is available exclusively from Antalis.
