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InspirationGraphic Design

Severn celebrates 10 years of design work 'worth shouting about' with a beautiful book

It happens to the best of us. One minute we're excitedly launching our own business; the next, we're stifled by a large client and our creativity is compromised. This is what happened to designer Tony Clarkson of Severn when he worked for another agency.

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Open book with bright pink pages displaying white text that reads "Don't be afraid to say f*ck it, and start again

"I'd become very restless at my old studio," he explains. "We had fallen into the trap of having one main client which took up most of the time and brought in most of the money. Things had been coasting along pretty easily for years and I was telling myself that it was fine, that things would change when we were ready, when we worked at it. But we never got around to working at it…

"I finally faced up to the fact that it wasn't going to happen, that nothing would change unless everybody wanted it to, and it had taken 10 years. I left and started a new studio pretty much from scratch.

"I spent a couple of months looking hard for the smallest detail left in any piece of work which was still worth something. I needed to get noticed on a wider scale to move forward in the way I wanted to, but it wouldn't happen just by getting people to look at a few case studies on my website, I needed a different way to do it."

The result of this process was Ten Yrs Ltr; a hard-backed, 100-page book full of references to work and events from that decade of design. The pages are just for looking at, there are no descriptions or labels, only the synopsis on the back cover explains what it’s all about. "What did it teach me?" Tony adds. "You should always keep moving forward, and looking back can be a great incentive."

Pink hardback book with a red ribbon bow and white illustrated details on the cover, showing the spine and edge of the pages
Open book displaying bold black brushstroke typography and abstract shapes on white pages from Severn's Ten Yrs Ltr publication
Open pages of a design book showing editorial layouts on the left with red graphic elements and architectural photography, and a navy blue cover with a white skyline illustration on the right
Three-dimensional red and white block letters spelling out part of a word against a dark grey background, showcasing bold typography design
Open pages of Ten Yrs Ltr book showing white text on black background listing life and work milestones from 1989 to 2014
Open book spread showing a purple banner with white "2012" numerals and a street scene below across two pages
Open book displaying abstract red and white geometric shapes across two pages, from Severn's Ten Yrs Ltr portfolio publication
Open spread from Severn's Ten Yrs Ltr book showing a striking turquoise stairwell with a figure climbing the steps against a minimalist architectural backdrop
Open hardback book displaying a double-page spread with blurred pink and dark tones showing a figure viewed from behind in an interior space
Open red book spread displaying the word "Discuss" in white serif typography across both pages
Two open pages of a book showing the title "Making Noise Quietly" by Robert Baesen in mixed serif and script typography on white paper with a vertical red line element
Two-page spread from Ten Yrs Ltr book showing people in a studio or office setting with warm pink tones, featuring figures in conversation and workspace details
Open book with pink spine showing Natural History Museum branding and exhibition text pages alongside black and white photography
Severn's Ten Yrs Ltr book displayed open and closed, showing pink cover with red cross design, black and white interior pages, and accompanying black booklet
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