Winners of the 2008 Museum Publications Design Competition More than 150 books, catalogues, posters, invitations, press kits and other materials have been selected as winners of the 28th annual AAM Museum Publications Design Competition (Pub Comp). The competition, which acknowledges excellence in the graphic design of museum publications, is the only national, juried event involving publications produced by museums of all kinds and sizes. This year’s contest drew more than 800 entries.
In 2000, AAM introduced the “best-of-show” award—the Frances Smyth-Ravenel Prize for Excellence in Publication Design. Known as the Franny, the prize is named for the late editor-in-chief at the National Gallery of Art, a long-time Pub Comp judge who was instrumental in helping the competition achieve the national stature it has today. This year, the judges awarded the Franny to the Freer Gallery of Art/Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Washington, D.C. for its annual report Asiatica 2008, designed by Kelly Doe. The judges felt the piece took the annual report form to a new level, making it something to keep and refer to year after year.
Competing institutions were divided according to budget: museums with annual operating budgets of $750,000 or more and those with budgets of less than $750,000. Within each budget division, entries competed in 15 categories, including books, educational resources, newsletters, fund-raising materials and scholarly journals. Entries in all 15 categories were eligible for the Franny.
Two teams of judges chose the winners. Comprising the first team were Andrea Stevens, Director of Strategic Communications, SITES, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Beth Lacey Gill, Publications Manager, National Aquarium in Baltimore; and Rodney Williams, RCW Communications Design, Alexandria, Va. Serving on the second team were Bennett DeOlazo, creative director, Studio B, Alexandria, Va.; Judy Metro, editor-in-chief, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; and Susan v. Levine, Creative Director, AAM.
A selection of the winners will be displayed at AAM’s annual meeting, which takes place in Denver, April 27–May 1, and the competition results will be featured in the July/August 2008 issue of AAM’s national magazine, Museum.
Download the list of 2008 PubComp Winners & Judges' Comments  Previous Year's Honorees: 2007 Winners Frances Smyth-Ravenel Prize
Budgets above $750,000
Budgets below $750,000 All entries were eligible for the Frances Smyth-Ravenel Prize for Excellence in Publication Design, Known as the Franny. In 2006, the judges awarded the Franny to the Smithsonian American Art Museum for the book America’s Art, designed by Karen Siatras, and published by Harry Abrams, New York.
Budgets Below $500,000
Budgets Above $500,000 For further information, please contact Managing Editor Susan Breitkopf at sbreitkopf@aam-us.org.
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