Semi Permanent’s 20 YEARS FORWARD & BACK publication celebrates the past and plans for the future

“Two decades is a long time and something hard to capture or share in a single gesture, which is why creating a book felt like the most personal and generous way to mark the milestone,” explains Mike Souvanthalisith, Design Director of Semi Permanent. Exploring two decades of existence for the Australian experience company and creative platform, Semi Permanent’s 20 YEARS FORWARD & BACK book is an archive of significant projects from the past as well as significant ideas that will guide them into the future. It describes itself as a ‘non-linear time capsule,’ owing to its non-chronological structure. “Print invites you to take in the journey however you want and from wherever in the timeline you choose to open the page to,” Souvanthalisith continues. “We made a conscious effort to not just start on year one and move in chronological order. Instead, we chose to showcase a sweeping view of creativity past, present and soon-to-be through the lens of industry icons and friends we’ve made along the way.” Among these include contributions from the likes of filmmaker Roman Coppola, industrial designer Sabine Marcelis, architect Bjarke Ingels, artist CJ Hendry, and digital entrepreneur Mikaela Jade. As a weighty collection of history and insight, it was fitting that the physical form took on an accurate and equally weighty appearance. As an object, the book design is “teched-out” and playful in the conventions of bookmaking: employing a semi-reflective cover, a full front-cover index, custom fonts, and flush page edges that create a hefty box-like feel.