Rose Window Book

In the Fall Semester of 2025, I took a studio arts class on bookmaking. We covered several different techniques, starting with basic paper folding and origami and then moved onto stab bindings and more. One project we never were able to complete due to time constraints was a concertina book with a removable spine. We were tasked with making a prototype but never took it beyond that.

Another one of my courses required me to create a completely original project with the purpose of adding it to my portfolio. When assessing my portfolio, I found that I did not have a demonstration of my love for physical design and creating. I decided to dedicate this project to rose windows found as I have always been fascinated by them and appreciate the intricacies of their construction.

I selected photographs of rose windows I loved the structure of and would be reasonable to recreate. I brought images of my selections into Adobe Illustrator and traced the segments of the windows. The traces were duplicated and placed twice. This template was printed at 12” H x 60” L.

Using a blade, I cut out the two identical designs of the windows from the template on both sides. Using double-sided tape, I adhered colored acetate on one side, then folded the remaining side back over the applied acetate, creating a window like effect.

To create the cover, I stacked two pieces of mat board on top of each other for both the front, and spine. These pieces were then wrapped in linen texture paper. I took this same paper and created a pocket on the inside of both the front and back cover. This is used to house the removable spine, this allows the book to be separated and allows the “windows” to be looked through as if they were real stained glass. The cover design is created by removing five small sections of the cover paper and then backing the cutout with a holographic sheet.