HarperCollins Publishers Award for Best Cover 2026
Finalist
Designer: Carly Yates and Gideon Keith (Seven)
Title: The Collector: Thomas Cheeseman and the making of the Auckland Museum
Publisher: Massey University Press
Format: 240 x 180 mm, 320pp, hardback.
Spine: Wibalin (Buckram, #534, Maroon) showing 58mm to front + Copper Foil Blocking (6 COPPER) on front wibalin panel and spine + blind deboss to front.
Case panel: 128 gsm Gloss artpaper printed 3 c (PMS 2018C, orange + PM3242C, blue + black) with scuff-resistant Matt Lamination
Finishing: Quarter-bound case with PLC over board, square back, section sewn in 16pp, separate ends, H/T band (HD8206, blue)
Typography: Domain Text 9.5/12pt
Publisher’s Brief:
“The brief required a treatment for a collection of visually subdued yet uniquely compelling images, creating a cover that would stand out on shelf while establishing a cohesive relationship between disparate imagery throughout the book.”
Judges’ Comments:
“Very effective use of colour for the cover. The contrast of the contemporary, bright Pantone coloured paper overlay, with the more traditional canvas cloth side makes the book feels like an ancient treasure as well as a fresh new read – an x-ray into the past!”
