Marinus Schepen's oddly appealing book about capital punishment

I’m not sure what it is about the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague that means it spews out so much creative talent at such an alarming rate, but it certainly doesn’t show any sign of stopping soon. Here’s an example; Marinus Schepen hasn’t even graduated from his Graphic Design studies there just yet, but the work he’s creating is of such a calibre that we can’t help but share it any how.

We Have Met The Enemy, And He Is Us is a book he designed in collaboration with fellow student Alyar Aynetchi, containing essays and transcribed readings about good, evil and capital punishment that were given as part of the Studium Generale programme last year, and in spite of the grave subject matter, it’s quite a thing to behold. Images are reproduced in bold half tone, contained within circular motif that recurs throughout the volume in a way that’s creepily evocative of peering up through the gallows mentioned in some of the essays. It’s quite a task to make something so formidable seem appealing, but between them Marinus and Alyar have managed it brilliantly.