A thoughtfully designed book documenting the remarkable biodiversity and fragile beauty of Anstey-Keane Dampland.
EXPERTISE
Book Design
The Anstey-Keane Dampland is one of Western Australia’s most remarkable wetland ecosystems. A Bush Forever site with more than 300 hectares in pristine condition, offering a delicate natural habitat to an extraordinary and diverse array of flora and fauna.
When Professor Philip Jennings AM proposed the idea of documenting this unique environment in a dedicated publication, authors Bryony Fremlin and David James, who had been visiting and photographing the Damplands for more than 20 years embraced the opportunity to bring the story of this precious landscape to a wider audience, ensuring it lived on for generations to come.
Bringing these wetlands to life in a publication through design, the approach was intentionally restrained, allowing the magnificent collection of macro-based photography to take centre stage. The photographs revealing the unique biodiversity of the wetlands in extraordinary and up-close detail, capturing insects, fungi, birds, reptiles and plant life often unseen by the casual observer.
A clean, modern layout and subtle colour palette were developed to compliment the photography, while also guiding readers through the narrative of the landscape. Each of the ten chapters are introduced with a silhouette-based illustration representing the different ecological groups featured throughout the book from insects and spiders to mammals, birds, plants, fungi, frogs and aquatic invertebrates, reptiles, animal tracks, feral animals and weeds. These quiet design elements provided structure while allowing the photography and the natural story of the wetlands to shine. All other illustrations were created by the author and photographer Bryony Fremlin.
This publication was supported by the Wetlands Conservation Society. The design and printing was funded through the Feilman Foundation. Initially produced in a limited print run of just 100 copies and launched at the Wetlands Centre in 2024, demand for this edition quickly sold out and was followed by a further short print run in 2025 and again in 2026. Copies can be accessed from libraries across Western Australia, while a free e-book is available for download ensuring this valuable resource and important record of the Anstey-Keane Dampland continues to educate and inspire future generations.