NYPL Insta Novels
2018
2018
Insta Novels is a re-imagining of the way we read, bringing full-length novels to Instagram stories, through the NYPL Instagram account. The New York Public Library worked with Mother to hack a familiar format with the goal of putting literature in the hands of as many readers as possible.
The campaign identity is based on evenly stacked lines of text, inspired by the NYPL logo. The color approach takes the library’s existing shade of red and pairs it with a cream, reminiscent of book pages, and a complementary blue.
To sucessfully bring full texts to Instagram stories, the entire format had to be reinvented. Margins were set to adapt to Instagram UI. The typeface Georgia was chosen, designed specifically for comfortable reading on screen. A flip-book-style illustration was placed where the reader’s thumb would go while reading the page.
We worked with five illustrators, animators, and designers from across the world to bring the books to life, collaborating with them to create animated covers, chapter dividers, and thumb-rest illustrations.
Insta Novels brought nearly 100k new followers to the @NYPL account in the first few weeks of its launch.
The campaign identity is based on evenly stacked lines of text, inspired by the NYPL logo. The color approach takes the library’s existing shade of red and pairs it with a cream, reminiscent of book pages, and a complementary blue.
To sucessfully bring full texts to Instagram stories, the entire format had to be reinvented. Margins were set to adapt to Instagram UI. The typeface Georgia was chosen, designed specifically for comfortable reading on screen. A flip-book-style illustration was placed where the reader’s thumb would go while reading the page.
We worked with five illustrators, animators, and designers from across the world to bring the books to life, collaborating with them to create animated covers, chapter dividers, and thumb-rest illustrations.
Insta Novels brought nearly 100k new followers to the @NYPL account in the first few weeks of its launch.
Designed with—Mother Design
Art Direction—Lauren van Aswegen, Matt van Leeuwen; Copy—Martin Baker; Design—Bentzion Goldman, Yihuang Zhou; Typefaces—Founders Grotesk, Georgia; Awards—Ad Age, Webby Awards, One Show
Illustrations: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland—Magoz; The Yellow Wallpaper—Buck; Metamorphosis—César Pelizer; The Raven—Psyop/Studio AKA; A Christmas Carol—Caitlin McCarthy;
Art Direction—Lauren van Aswegen, Matt van Leeuwen; Copy—Martin Baker; Design—Bentzion Goldman, Yihuang Zhou; Typefaces—Founders Grotesk, Georgia; Awards—Ad Age, Webby Awards, One Show
Illustrations: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland—Magoz; The Yellow Wallpaper—Buck; Metamorphosis—César Pelizer; The Raven—Psyop/Studio AKA; A Christmas Carol—Caitlin McCarthy;