Marber was commissioned in 1961 by Penguin's art director Germano Facetti, after being impressed by Marber's designs for the Economist. Marber was initially commissioned to produce covers for the books 'language in the modern world' and 'our language' by Simeon Potter, however this lead to Marber being asked, alongside designers Derek Birdsall and John Sewell, to propose a new design approach for Penguin's crime fiction novels.
Romek Marber’s covers for The Economist – 1961 (courtesy of CR Blog)
Based on observation, Marber decided what was needed for the layout and designed his grid based on his findings. Due to the fact that the mystery and crime series style had not changed in 25 years, and the fac that the crime series was one of the most recognizable Penguin series, Marber decided to alter the green hue of the covers only slightly, ensuring it still remained familiar.
Marber's design of placing the typographic info and the colophon in the top third of the page allows two thirds of the cover providing space for the illustration. In result, this grid gives the cover artwork enough space to draw attention from potential buyers.
Eventually Marber's grid became the standard layout for the entire range of Penguin paperbacks.
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