On the Road by Jack Kerouac (De Bezige Bij)
In 2020, Dutch publisher De Bezige Bij issued a new edition of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, using Guido Golüke’s translation from 1988. Amsterdam-based studio Moker Ontwerp provided the cover design. The main title shows custom lettering by Henk van het Nederend, employing two elements that are typical for the 1950s/1960s: alternating glyph colors and interlocking letterforms. By giving the two O’s the same color, the words start to become pictorial, hinting at car tires. The semi-slab caps with subtly flared stems are nicely contrasted with Disturbed Script by Shamfonts. The informal monoline script with the bouncing baseline was used for the names of author and publisher as well as the Dutch title (Onderweg). The Type Directors Club in New York recently awarded the cover design with a Certificate of Typographic Excellence.
