The Joinery Compendium: Learning From Japanese Woodworking

“The Joinery Compendium” was awarded one of the most beautiful German Books in 2025.

Work book design for The Joinery Compendium — an illustrated guide to traditional joinery for woodworking enthusiasts, designers, artisans, architects, and anyone who wants to learn more about the topic of wood joints.

The extensive work book design features a vast number of terminologies of wood joints.
The workbook design feaches about wood quality, as well as tools for woodworking.

The index-like structure and simplified illustrations make it easy to find and compare various joints in this documentation. The work book design tries to segment the complicated joints into a step-by-step manual. The properties of wood and essential tools are introduced, and step-by-step instructions for crafting each joint are provided. Detailed terminology in English, German, and Japanese enriches the understanding of the connections and helps encourage further research.

Closeup of a spread about wood joints.
Closeup of a spread about wood joints.

This book aims to offer design inspiration for aesthetically pleasing and sustainable joints. Embracing the timeless artistry and practical ingenuity of the craft provides an understanding of resources and repairability. Whether you are a novice or a seasoned professional, The Joinery Compendium is your essential companion to traditional wood joints.

Closeup of a spread about different wood joints
Glossary of different wood joints
Work book design for “The Joinery Compendium”, a manual for learning from traditional wood working

Client:

 Sascha Bauer, Daniel Pauli

Partners:

 Sascha Bauer, Daniel Pauli, Ruby Press

ISBN:

 978-3-944074-52-8

URL:

 https://ruby-press.com/shop/the-joinery-compendium-learning-from-traditional-woodworking/

Studio Tillack Knöll is a multicreative design practice that concerns itself with the visual and spatial aspects of communication. We design exhibitions, wayfinding systems, books, posters and cultural identities for a variety of clients involved in architecture, art, science and commerce to cultural institutions and NGOs.