The French graphic artist Robert Massin revolutionized the editorial design of the 1950s and 1960s with a series of books that have become iconic in the history of 20th century typography. In an era dominated by the austere Swiss graphic language, Massin combined the language of traditional graphic arts with highly innovative expressive elements. In his designs the word becomes visible based on graphic resources that intensify the meaning of the printed text.
Corita Kent, known as Sister Corita, was an unusual figure in the American graphic arts scene of the 1960s and 1970s. A Catholic nun and teacher at an art school in Los Angeles, Corita captured the spirit of her time in a graphic work that combined Christian spirituality and hippie philosophy with a Pop Art-influenced aesthetic. Corita Kent’s language was in tune with the artistic expression of her contemporaries, an art that exalted American popular culture and found beauty and transcendence in the prosaic elements of everyday life.
Bookworm is a journey through books guided by Andreu Jansà, librarian and curator of the Enric Bricall Reserve Fund. Students will have the privilege of studying unique copies of the Elisava Library.
The objective of the Reserve Collection is to become a true universal history of modern graphic design applied to the publishing world. The books that make up the collection are documented in the main accounts of the history of 20th century graphic design.
