Sarah Schulte is a graphic designer and art director focused on books, identities and interactive experiences. She studied Writing, Literature and Publishing at Emerson College in Boston. While working as book designer at Harvard Education Press, she completed the Graphic Design program at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She has collaborated with cultural and art institutions including MoMA and The National Archives. She lives in a sun-filled house in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, two daughters and boxer.

AL—Your work sets itself apart from much commercial book design by foregrounding the materials of which it is made – paper, coloured card etc. It is clearly not designed on a computer. Are materiality and tactility important parts of your process?

SS—Most definitely. A few years ago, when my professional work shifted primarily into digital design, I found myself searching for a tactile, hands-on creative outlet. I took workshops in embroidery and weaving. Weekends were a time to explore watercolour, pencil drawing, marbling and block printing techniques. After my second daughter was born, I needed to find a craft that I could easily pick up and put down during the small windows of time I had to myself. Collage became a flexible, immediate art form to pursue at that moment, and it stuck. Paper as a medium adds a layer of dimensionality and texture that is really satisfying – it opens up possibilities to weave, fold, overlap and experiment with die-cuts. I save most of my card stock clippings, so I have a large box of pre-cut shapes to pull out and play with. In a way, ...