Conceptual cover redesign for Bessel van der Kolk’s groundbreaking book on trauma, the body, and recovery.

This redesign explores the physicality of trauma through a minimalist typographic layout overlaid onto a reworked archival study (Studies of Arms, Shoulders and Hands by Giacomo Franco, courtesy of The Met collection). The expressive, contorted anatomy evokes both strength and strain, creating an abstract visual representation of the body as a vessel of memory and resistance.

A bold ultramarine palette anchors the design in a sense of urgency and vitality, contrasting with the smooth sans-serif type which mirrors the clinical precision of the book's psychological insights. The interplay between the rigid text grid and the gestural line-work below reflects the central tension of the book, the negotiation between control and chaos in the aftermath of trauma.

The composition aims to be both visceral and restrained, capturing the embodied nature of trauma without sensationalising it. The result is a visually arresting, conceptually driven cover that foregrounds the book’s core message: the body remembers.