Open the book, turn the pages, look at it, tell it and read it aloud: The children’s book raises expectations, surprises with the new, amazes with the strange, entices with the unknown and amuses by recognising familiar things.
The online exhibition ‘Amazement in children’s books’ uses selected examples from children’s books from the mid-17th century to the beginning of the 20th century to trace how the forms, objects, aims and values of amazement have changed over the centuries. It introduces a history of children’s amazement as a cultural and social history. At the same time, it also provides insights into the history of imagination, art, literature and education.
In collaboration with the Zurich-based graphic design duo Resort Studio, I developed the website for the online exhibition, which was created with the support of the University of Zurich and SIKJM. The introduction to the world of books is provided by a Lottie animation. On the book table, the sizes of the covers are based on their real dimensions. The detailed views make it possible to browse and look closely, as well as experience the story audiovisually. Filter options also offer categorisation by subject area. The website is based on WordPress.
