The design of the book on the Gramaxo Foundation, the work of architect Álvaro Siza Vieira, seeks to synthesise certain values of space, light and materiality that can be interpreted not only in the architecture, but also in the record made by photographer António Júlio Duarte. Physically, the book is heavy, austere and clean. It is printed entirely on coated, glossy paper (Fedrigoni Symbol Freelife Gloss Premium White 150gr), which, being very compact, results in a relatively narrow spine for its almost 200 pages. On the other hand, the hardcover binding is made of thinner cardboard than usual (1.25 mm instead of the usual 2 mm). The density and structure of the object become palpable. The materials are presented in all their truth and dignity, without artifice. A book that, like Siza's architecture, is timeless.

The paper chosen also allows for a very accurate reproduction, in which the black and white of the photograph achieves a great depth of tone, also enriched by printing with two direct colours: black and grey (Coolgray 4). The page layout is modernist, and the geometric grid is reinforced by the choice of typeface, which is also modern. The Swiss font Theinhardt is used in very light weights and with only slight differences in thickness to distinguish Portuguese from English or the questions from the answers, without ever competing with the images. These, in turn, describe a fluid narrative from the beginning to the end of the book, without chapters or sections, which begins in the building's surroundings before the work begins, the landscape where the concrete then begins to emerge, then enters the still-empty foundation, and exits again with the construction now complete. Occasional detours to the quarry, the carpenter's shop, the furniture and the architect's office, to end the book with the Foundation's rooms finally inhabited by pieces from the collection of objects, paintings and jewellery. A sequence of images that occasionally comes close to the textual content, but always follows its own path. With a quiet naturalness.