Take Your Pleasure Seriously
Out of stock
Take Your Pleasure Seriously
Out of Stock
“Luca Barcellona shatters the boundaries as he blends his street sensibility with fine penmanship.”
— Letter Arts Review
For 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.
Text by Luca Barcellona, Giovanni De Faccio
and Nicola “Dee Mo” Peressoni
Interview by Chaz Bojórquez
Book design by Pitis
19 × 27 cm (7 ½ × 10 ½”)
224 + 32 pages
Over 400 full-color illustrations
Clothbound with poster jacket
English-Italian edition
ISBN: 978-88-98030-00-2
Available November 2012
Retail Price: € 68
In the Press
“Luca Barcellona uses letters as the building blocks”
Steven Heller“A book narrates the penmanship”
AT casa“Editorial newborn”
Silvia Moretti - Art Tribune“His striking, expressive, and original letterforms and compositions open onto uncharted territory, laying the foundations of a new writing style.”
Wildstylers.com“A gesture suddenly becomes an alphabet”
Il Sole 24 Ore“Art of writing”
Marieclaire.it“Do not call me writer”
L'Espresso - Angiola Codacci“Luca Barcellona is a national treasure”
Cosebellemagazine“Letters become alive”
Repubblica Milano“A new book from a new italian editor”
Frizzifrizzi.it“Will you make a book? A year later the book.”
Red Bull.it“Luca Barcellona: from graffiti to calligraphy”
Moodboards.ro“A talk to Luca Barcellona”
Rapburger.com“Handwriting as a brand”
La Lettura - Michele Boroni“Off the wall”
Flair“The new calligraphy”
La Repubblica (Firenze)“Dear pen friend”
Vogue Italia“My job? Explaining what I do”
Vanity Fair.it“Dreaming his writing”
Le Monde“Interview with Luca Barcellona”
Juxtapoz“The writing artisan”
L'Arena.it“Luca Barcellona – Calligraphic Masterpieces”
Collater.al“Zamenhof meets Luca Barcellona”
Zamenhof“Meet An Artist Who's Mastered The Painstaking Art Of Calligraphy”
Fast Company“Overlook at Luca Barcellona's first book”
Pizzadigitale“Luca Barcellona x Graffitishop”
Spectrum Stores“Listen to Luca Barcellona's interview”
Radio Popolare
Authors
Luca Barcellona
Luca Barcellona (Milano), born in 1978, is a name that represents a touchstone for the world of modern calligraphy. Working as a graphic designer and freelance calligrapher, letters are the main component of his creations. The aim of his work is to promote coexistence between the manual skill found in antique art forms like calligraphy with the languages and instruments of the digital era. His lettering has been requested by many leading brands in the fashion, clothing, recording and editorial industries (such as Nike, Absolut, Pirelli, Universal, Wall Street English, Carhartt and Mondadori). He has also worked for major museum commissioning bodies and since 2007, Luca has taught calligraphy through the Italian Calligraphy Association. He holds workshops and conferences all over the world, while his artwork has been exhibited in numerous galleries.
