Calligraphy
Lazy Dog exists thanks to calligraphy and pays attention to all the expressions of this ancient and very current discipline. From classic styles to graffiti, from posters to engravings, from signs to tags. Handwriting, calligraphy and lettering are experiencing a new spring, waiting to be discovered.
€ 29,00Luca Barcellona is an internationally known calligrapher, whom we are used to knowing for his immediate language, made of sinuous letters that bring calligraphic art into the contemporary world. Lost in Strokes is a publication about the artist’s current work, which, however, differs from the ‘Barcelona world’ we all know.
The book speaks an unprecedented language, on the borderline between asemic writing and painting, which photographs Barcelona’s expressive, stylistic and emotional evolution and his work of very recent times, demonstrating once again how for the author writing represents a dense, meditative, certainly artistic act. Letters for the first time are transformed into urban landscapes that create new pictorial alphabets, skylines start from types, are nourished by writing, but also take their distance from it to become something else, much more complex, as if to summarise the artist’s journey so far.
Certainly “using writing, making writing, and partly overcoming writing itself is an urgent issue in our contemporary times” (Fabiola Naldi), and once again Luca Barcellona positions himself as one of the most interesting artists on the international calligraphy scene, who indeed each time seems to push the boundary of the discipline a little further, trespassing, through an expressive metamorphosis, into contemporary art.
Also available in limited edition: Lost in Strokes – Limited Edition
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Texts by Fabiola Naldi and Luca Barcellona
Soundtrack by Dj Craim
Book design by Bunker21 × 28 cm
48 pages
Gloo bound
Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-46-0
First published February 2022
€ 120,00The special edition boxed contains, in addition to the volume, three 30 × 60 cm posters and the vinyl LP with Dj Craim’s specially reissued soundtrack. Issued in 100 copies, it is available only on our website.
Luca Barcellona is an internationally known calligrapher, whom we are used to knowing for his immediate language, made of sinuous letters that bring calligraphic art into the contemporary world. Lost in Strokes is a publication about the artist’s current work, which, however, differs from the ‘Barcelona world’ we all know.
The book speaks an unprecedented language, on the borderline between asemic writing and painting, which photographs Barcelona’s expressive, stylistic and emotional evolution and his work of very recent times, demonstrating once again how for the author writing represents a dense, meditative, certainly artistic act. Letters for the first time are transformed into urban landscapes that create new pictorial alphabets, skylines start from types, are nourished by writing, but also take their distance from it to become something else, much more complex, as if to summarise the artist’s journey so far.
Certainly “using writing, making writing, and partly overcoming writing itself is an urgent issue in our contemporary times” (Fabiola Naldi), and once again Luca Barcellona positions himself as one of the most interesting artists on the international calligraphy scene, who indeed each time seems to push the boundary of the discipline a little further, trespassing, through an expressive metamorphosis, into contemporary art.
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Texts by Fabiola Naldi and Luca Barcellona
Soundtrack by Dj Craim
Book design by Bunker21 × 28 cm
48 pages
Gloo bound
Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-46-0
First published February 2022
€ 48,00Claudio Rocha and Tony de Marco founded “Tupigrafia” magazine at the beginning of the millennium in São Paulo and have been working on it ever since. They are editorial designers and have always been a reference point for visual artists, communicators, researchers, teachers, calligraphers, street writers and typographers in Brazil. They created “Tupigrafia” because they wanted to have fun with letterforms and stay in touch with like-minded readers, exchanging ideas and experiences on the typographic scene. Their surprising and unconventional magazine has always reflected the state of typographic arts and lettering in Brazil and around the world.
Now, after more than 20 years and 13 issues only available in Portuguese and almost all out of print, the masters of “Tupigrafia”, Rocha and De Marco, launch the first English-language anthology of the original magazine. A powerful and colourful 208-page volume presenting the vibrant content of “Tupigrafia” for an international audience of lettering and typeface enthusiasts.
This unpredictable and unmissable anthology will feature some of ‘Tupigrafia’s most inventive and innovative subjects such as, among others, the sign painters known as “abridores de letras”, who work on boats in the Amazon; the Dutch postage stamps created by Gerrit Noordzij, Wim Crouwel, Joost Swarte and others; Fefê Talavera’s wall paintings for the ‘concrete jungle’ of São Paulo; the bizarre wooden typefaces of the Tipoteca Italiana and even the hidden typography of a pencil collection.
Also available in limited edition: Tupigrafia. 2000–2020 Anthology – Limited edition
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Design and curatorship by Claudio Rocha and Tony de Marco
Cover title by Luca Barcellona15.5 × 22.5 cm
208 pages with letterpress insert
Hardback
Isbn 978-88-98030-41-5
First published September 2021
€ 130,00Special edition limited to 50 copies for collectors
60×40 cm dust jacket/poster with alphabet by Luca Barcellona
Canvas slipcase with hot foil stamping.Claudio Rocha and Tony de Marco founded “Tupigrafia” magazine at the beginning of the millennium in São Paulo and have been working on it ever since. They are editorial designers and have always been a reference point for visual artists, communicators, researchers, teachers, calligraphers, street writers and typographers in Brazil. They created “Tupigrafia” because they wanted to have fun with letterforms and stay in touch with like-minded readers, exchanging ideas and experiences on the typographic scene. Their surprising and unconventional magazine has always reflected the state of typographic arts and lettering in Brazil and around the world.
Now, after more than 20 years and 13 issues only available in Portuguese and almost all out of print, the masters of “Tupigrafia”, Rocha and De Marco, launch the first English-language anthology of the original magazine. A powerful and colourful 208-page volume presenting the vibrant content of “Tupigrafia” for an international audience of lettering and typeface enthusiasts.
This unpredictable and unmissable anthology will feature some of ‘Tupigrafia’s most inventive and innovative subjects such as, among others, the sign painters known as “abridores de letras”, who work on boats in the Amazon; the Dutch postage stamps created by Gerrit Noordzij, Wim Crouwel, Joost Swarte and others; Fefê Talavera’s wall paintings for the ‘concrete jungle’ of São Paulo; the bizarre wooden typefaces of the Tipoteca Italiana and even the hidden typography of a pencil collection.
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Design and curatorship by Claudio Rocha and Tony de Marco
Cover title by Luca Barcellona15.5 × 22.5 cm
208 pages with letterpress insert
Hardback
Isbn 978-88-98030-41-5
First published September 2021
€ 19,50Il tratto (The stroke) constitutes the fundamental element of the written word, whether handwritten or printed. The qualities of voids and solids are explained in this fundamental text by typographer Gerrit Noordzij.
First published in Dutch in 1982, in English in 1985 and in a later updated edition in Italian in 2007, Il tratto presents a careful and organic synthesis of his theory of writing. The method of line drawing developed here stems from the author’s innovative contribution during his teaching period at the Academy of Fine Arts in The Hague, where fundamental concepts such as expansion and contrast took shape. They made it possible, on the one hand, to revolutionise the teaching of writing and its history and, on the other hand, to approach the Dutch typographic tradition in a concrete way. With extraordinary precision, Noordzij analyses the morphology of writing in a happy interweaving of diachronic and synchronic dimensions, while at the same time restoring its proper prominence, certainly in the field of calligraphy but also in typography and design.
A not-to-be-missed text, now available in a new edition, to delve deeper into a figure who is still not sufficiently known in Italy, but also very influential in the international typographic panorama.
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Text and illustrations by Gerrit Noordzij
Translation by Alessandro Colizzi12.5 × 19 cm
88 pages
Paperback
Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-29-3
First published July 2020
€ 28,00Writing is undoubtedly a leading factor in the development of human civilisation. In Italy, the task of promoting the culture of ‘beautiful writing’ is carried out by the Associazione Calligrafica Italiana (Italian Calligraphic Association) through workshops, specialised courses and various initiatives. After years of neglect, this discipline is now more alive than ever, especially among young people. In response to this growing interest, the Association’s master calligraphers have prepared this new and valuable tool.
A manual that introduces the basic rules of calligraphy and examines eleven handwriting styles, from classical to contemporary. Each model is edited by a teacher of the Association who is an expert in the respective style. Finally, the last part presents some examples of practical application, created by both ACI members and internationally renowned colleagues and collaborators. The manual is recommended for students, professionals, calligraphy enthusiasts and all those who seek the beauty of handwritten letters.
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Texts and illustrations by the masters of the Italian Calligraphic Association
21.5 × 30 cm
104 pages
Paperback
Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-31-6
First published September 2020
Out of Stock€ 49,90Whimsical and intuitive, original, humorous, improvised, elegant: Italian signs are a mirror of Italian society. What distinguishes the most interesting Italian signs and inscriptions is the variety of original letterforms.
Before typefaces and fonts dominated the scene, there was no standardization in Italy of letterforms for commercial signs and there were no printed manuals for signwriters. This freedom and detachment from standard models of letters as well as the craftsmanship and creativity of the signmakers and designers are what make Italian signs so extraordinary.
In this book, the Italian-based British designer, teacher and writer, James Clough, examines Italian signs within a historical perspective and from many standpoints. From the ornate Tuscan style of the 19th century to the eccentric letters of Art Nouveau, from the grandiose architectural lettering of the 1930s to the exquisite surviving examples of the old signwriters, from fascist ghost signs to lettering on manhole covers, Clough points out the highs and lows of this artistic expression as he takes readers on a fascinating lettering tour of Italy.
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Text and illustrations by James Clough
Cover design by Luca Barcellona
Book design by Bunker12 × 8½”
248 pages
Over 300 photographs
Hardcover
English edition
Isbn 978-88-98030-08-8
First edition September 2015
€ 45,00“Writing becomes art and individual letters take on a life of their own”.
– La RepubblicaThe first published monograph on the artist is now available in a new, larger softcover edition. The book features hundreds of drawings including commissioned works, personal projects, performances and many never-before-seen works. Barcelona is internationally regarded as one of the most important lettering artists working today. Ideal for calligraphers, graphic designers, type designers, art directors, advertising professionals, illustrators and students.
For Luca Barcellona, letters are the building blocks of his creations. From Carolingian to tags, from quill pen to spray can, Barcellona takes the ancient craft of lettering to new heights with the inventiveness and talent of a contemporary virtuoso. His surprising, expressive and original forms and compositions open up unexplored territory, laying the foundations for a new style of lettering. Barcelona’s versatile work is admired and commissioned by major brands in fashion, music, film and publishing.
With contributions by: Charles ‘Chaz’ Bojórquez, legendary urban artist from Los Angeles, who began his career in the Chicano scene of the late 1960s and over the years has successfully transitioned from the street to the art gallery; Giovanni De Faccio, professional calligrapher, typeface designer (his best known is Rialto DF), and founding member of the Associazione Calligrafica Italiana. He is internationally renowned for his teaching and dedication to the promotion of calligraphy. He teaches calligraphy and type design at the New Design University in St. Pölten, Austria. Nicola ‘Dee Mo’ Peressoni made his debut in the late 1980s as an illustrator of European hardcore punk covers, posters and fanzines and went on to work in hip hop, becoming a pioneering figure in graffiti and Italian rap. His writings have been published in “Max”, “Rumore” and “Rolling Stone”.
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Texts by Luca Barcellona, Giovanni De Faccio and Nicola ‘Dee Mo’ Peressoni
Interview by Chaz Bojórquez
Original book design by Pitis
Paperback edition with revised layout by Bunker23 × 33 cm
240 pages
Over 400 full color illustrations
Paperback
English/Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-02-6
First published March 2016
Out of Stock€ 180,00Among the very first literary works by Franz Kafka this telegraphic novel synthetizes a vision of the human condition through the simple similitude between men and trees. In this edition the text has not been set with a typeface but re-written by hand and engraved according to the xilographic technique on linoleum plates.
Luca Barcellona achieves his own personal “performance” of the novel with the tools of writing. The gothic-shaped letters draw an intricate and rough winter landscape, printed on plain white paper with a totally black ink, showing Kafka’s suggestions at the first glimpse.
The necessary attention to read the text force us to concentrate completely on the few words of the short story. Words gain relief, thickness, thanks to the engraver’s sharp blade, and offer a graphic interpretation of the text, without any other visual element, on Rudolf Koch’s paths.Lazy Dog and Il Buon Tempo in a very special limited edition: 25 copies out of 40, entirely hand printed and bound, all numbered and signed by the author.
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Text by Franz Kafka
Original engravings by Luca Barcellona
Afterword by Lucio Passerini
In co-edition with Il Buon Tempo, Milan25,5 × 18 cm (10 × 7″)
16 pages
Softcover, and case
Italian
First published June 2014
€ 500,00“Luca Barcellona shatters the boundaries as he blends his street sensibility with fine penmanship.”
— Letter Arts ReviewFor Luca Barcellona, Italian graphic designer and calligrapher, letters are the building blocks of his creations. From Carolingian to tags, from the quill to the spray can, Barcellona takes the age-old craft of lettering to new heights with the inventiveness and talent of a contemporary virtuoso. His striking, expressive, and original letterforms and compositions open onto uncharted territory, laying the foundations of a new writing style.
Take Your Pleasure Seriously (a quote by the designers Charles and Ray Eames) serves as a leitmotif for Barcellona who turned his passion into a way of life, first as a graffiti artist and then as a professional calligrapher. His production spans a broad spectrum from the reproduction of a world globe from 1569 to brand identities, book covers, ad campaigns, and performances.
This beautifully designed artist book features hundreds of drawings made over the last decade including commissioned work (Carhartt, Dolce & Gabbana, Nike, Red Bull, Universal, etc.), personal projects, performances, and many never-seen-before work. The book will fascinate and inspire anybody who works with letters or is interested in how they look.
Contributors: Charles “Chaz” Bojórquez legendary urban artist from Los Angeles, began his career in the Chicano scene of the late 1960s and over the years shifted successfully from street to gallery artist; Giovanni De Faccio is a professional calligrapher, typeface designer (his most well-known is Rialto DF), and founding member of the Italian Calligraphic Association. He is internationally renowned for his teaching and dedication to the promotion of calligraphy. He teaches calligraphy and type design at the New Design University in St. Pölten, Austria; Nicola “Dee Mo” Peressoni debuted in the late eighties as an illustrator of European hardcore punk covers, posters, and fanzines, and went on to work in hip hop, becoming a pioneering figure in Italian graffiti and rap. His writing has been published in Max, Rumore, and Rolling Stone Italy.
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Text by Luca Barcellona, Giovanni De Faccio and Nicola “Dee Mo” Peressoni
Interview by Chaz Bojórquez
Book design PitisCollector’s Limited Edition of 50 copies
Each book signed, numbered, and personalized by the artist with the purchaser’s name
Includes an original work by the artist on cotton paper 16 × 18 cm (6 ¼ × 7”).
Housed in an embossed clothbound clamshell box
19 × 27 cm (7 ½ × 10 ½”)
224 + 32 pages
Over 400 color plates.
Clothbound with poster jacket.
English/Italian
First published November 2012
Out of Stock€ 68,00“Luca Barcellona shatters the boundaries as he blends his street sensibility with fine penmanship.”
— Letter Arts ReviewFor Luca Barcellona, Italian graphic designer and calligrapher, letters are the building blocks of his creations. From Carolingian to tags, from the quill to the spray can, Barcellona takes the age-old craft of lettering to new heights with the inventiveness and talent of a contemporary virtuoso. His striking, expressive, and original letterforms and compositions open onto uncharted territory, laying the foundations of a new writing style.
Take Your Pleasure Seriously (a quote by the designers Charles and Ray Eames) serves as a leitmotif for Barcellona who turned his passion into a way of life, first as a graffiti artist and then as a professional calligrapher. His production spans a broad spectrum from the reproduction of a world globe from 1569 to brand identities, book covers, ad campaigns, and performances.
This beautifully designed artist book features hundreds of drawings made over the last decade including commissioned work (Carhartt, Dolce & Gabbana, Nike, Red Bull, Universal, etc.), personal projects, performances, and many never-seen-before work. The book will fascinate and inspire anybody who works with letters or is interested in how they look.
Contributors: Charles “Chaz” Bojórquez legendary urban artist from Los Angeles, began his career in the Chicano scene of the late 1960s and over the years shifted successfully from street to gallery artist; Giovanni De Faccio is a professional calligrapher, typeface designer (his most well-known is Rialto DF), and founding member of the Italian Calligraphic Association. He is internationally renowned for his teaching and dedication to the promotion of calligraphy. He teaches calligraphy and type design at the New Design University in St. Pölten, Austria; Nicola “Dee Mo” Peressoni debuted in the late eighties as an illustrator of European hardcore punk covers, posters, and fanzines, and went on to work in hip hop, becoming a pioneering figure in Italian graffiti and rap. His writing has been published in Max, Rumore, and Rolling Stone Italy.
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Text by Luca Barcellona, Giovanni De Faccio and Nicola “Dee Mo” Peressoni
Interview by Chaz Bojórquez
Book design Pitis19 × 27 cm (7 ½ × 10 ½”)
224 + 32 pages
Over 400 full-color illustrations
Clothbound with poster jacket
English/Italian
Isbn 978-88-98030-00-2
First published November 2012
