John Murray Press

We were commissioned to carve two wooden panels to be located within the new lobby of Hachette UK Carmelite House, London. The panels were to reflect the heritage & long-established reputations of two publishers: Hodder & Stoughton and John Murray Press.

We have worked closely with the client from the early design development stages until completion and the installation of the carved panels into the existing display bookshelves.

We have a lot of experience working with corporate companies and institutes where the decision-making process is carried out by a group of clients rather than an individual. Apart from an in-depth communication process through email, telephone conversation and face to face meetings, we also provide preparatory stages to make the design process and subsequent decisions easier for our clients.

During this project, we produced small hand-drawn sketches for the initial design development, followed by a final design in 1:1 scale drawing for the client’s approval. Once the drawing was approved, we also created clay models of some of the carving elements in three-dimensional forms to aid the client’s visualisation process to come to a final decision.

The John Murray Press carved panel is 660mm wide x 770mm high, and the panel sits slightly recessed within a bank of shelves showcasing John Murray Press published books.

The bespoke panel is carved in maple and finished with clear wax.

The wood carving elements include:

• Carved company logo – raised letters.
• Company name – incised cut letters.
• Stacked books – carved in high relief with incised logos.
• Heraldic carved image which is set into a carved book.