TORONTO—The eastern winners of the 29th annual Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada were celebrated in Toronto on Oct. 3; the western winners will be feted in Vancouver on Oct. 12. The Toronto event, co-hosted by the Alcuin Society and the Arts and Letters Club, was held at the Club's historic digs, St. George's Hall.



Peter Cocking, Douglas & McIntyre's long-time art director, is the big winner this time, taking home three first prizes, two second prizes and one honourable mention. While his colleagues at D&M and D&M imprint Greystone Books also fared well. Jessica Sullivan was awarded three first prizes and two honourable mentions and Naomi MacDougall two first prizes. Other notable winners include Andrew Steeves of Gaspereau Press, with one first prize and two honourable mentions, and Linda Gustafson of design studio Counterpunch with two second prizes and one honourable mention. Awards are handed out in eight categories: Children, Limited Editions, Pictorial, Poetry, Prose Fiction, Prose Non-Fiction, Prose Non-Fiction Illustrated and Reference.

The evening's festivities included a talk by acclaimed writer, editor and typographer William Toye about the work of his friend, book designer Frank Newfeld, whose career in book design and illustration spans over 50 years. The Alcuin Society, founded by Vancouver bibliophiles in 1965, presented Newfeld with its Robert R. Reid Award and Medal, recognizing his contributions to the book arts in Canada, in 2009. The 2011 recipient, Glenn Goluska died in August in Montreal.

For a complete list of winners or for a short image gallery of the first-prize work.