On Wednesday 27 May we warmly welcome you to an evening of book presentations!
~Alphabettes Soup: Feminist Approaches to Type by publisher Nina Paim and Amy Papaeliasc (online)
~On the Edges of Graphic Design from A—Z—∞ by editor Anja Lutz
Moderator: Clara Balaguer
From 19.30 – 21.00 at PrintRoom
(Doors open at 19:00)
Van Speykstraat 121, Rotterdam
You’re invited!
This evening brings together two recent publications from the field of graphic design, documenting experimental initiatives in the field – the online platform Alphabettes and A—Z, a space for experimental graphic design in Berlin. Both books are more than anthologies, and look to alternative approaches, forms and positions in graphic design, invested in shaping its future through hands-on practice and collaboration. Editor Amy Papaelias and publisher Nina Paim from Bikini Books will discuss Alphabettes Soup and Anja Lutz will present On the Edges of Graphic Design from A—Z—∞. Clara Balaguer will moderate the evening of presentations and conversations.
Alphabettes Soup celebrates a decade of feminist approaches to type research, design, and creative community-building. The book blends key articles from the Alphabettes platform with original essays, exploring intersections between culture, language, business practices, technology, and type. It also includes interviews with Alphabettes members, visual histories, and reflections on past and ongoing initiatives. More than an anthology, Alphabettes Soup is a dynamic collection of voices and stories. The book is conceived as a type specimen, showcasing over 100 typefaces designed by women and non-binary individuals. Aimed at challenging dominant narratives in type history and contemporary practice, Alphabettes Soup seeks to inspire future generations to create their own decentralized design communities.
About Alphabettes:
In 2015, amid intense discussions about sexism and gender diversity in the type industry, a conversation among a few internet acquaintances quickly expanded into a wide-reaching network of over 300 type designers, lettering artists, typographers, and design educators. With no financial support or organizational structures, Alphabettes was born. Since then, this decentralized network has published hundreds of articles, paired emerging type designers with mentors, and hosted numerous public events and critique sessions. Committed to promoting equity, Alphabettes advocates for diversity in type design at conferences, educational institutions, and throughout the industry worldwide.
About the Editor:
Amy Papaelias is one of the founding members of Alphabettes. In late August 2015, she purchased the domain Alphabettes.org, and a month later she set up the blog with Indra Kupferschmid during some late-night, cross-Atlantic CSS and WordPress hacking. Since then, Amy has helped keep the lights on at Alphabettes.org (with a small team of wizards and unicorns), which has published over 400 original posts and 200+ headers by over 200+ authors. In her spare time, Amy is an Associate Professor of Graphic Design at the State University of New York and has presented her research at many national and international venues.
About the Publisher:
Bikini Books is a feminist publisher based in Porto, Portugal. Established in 2023 by the designer, curator, and editor Nina Paim, Bikini publishes beautiful books and engaging stories at the intersection of design, visual culture, and architecture, with a focus on accessibility and critical thinking.
Nina Paim is a graphic designer, publisher and curator. She is a three-time Swiss Design Awards recipient and has co-curated numerous exhibitions, workshops, and events internationally. She co-edited several publications, including Taking a Line for a Walk (Spector Books, 2016), Design Struggles (Valiz, 2021), and Alter-Care (Esad-Idea, 2021). In 2020, she co-founded the feminist platform Futuress.org, which she co-directed until mid-2023, when she left to start Bikini Books—her lifelong dream.
On the Edges of Graphic Design from A—Z—∞ celebrates the past, present, and future of alternative Graphic Design through the hands and minds of a multidisciplinary and international design community, their practices, and community-building experiences at A—Z Presents, the Berlin space for experimental Graphic Design.
Assuming the form of an ‘Index for alternative Graphic Design’, the book offers a comprehensive view of the wide range of activities performed by a multitude of graphic designers and visual artists with diverse backgrounds, ages, and career standings over the past six years. It also looks ahead by exploring how a group of international designers envision the future of the discipline of Graphic Design.
The first part, A—Z, features all the projects, workshops, exhibitions, talks, and a wide range of activities and events initiated by A—Z, in alphabetical, cross-referenced entries. The second part, titled —∞, features 36 international designers, including April Greiman, Richard Niessen, and Loraine Furter, who were invited to envision the future of Graphic Design and how it could be enacted in a transdisciplinary space like A—Z. These contributions range from reflections on the body in digital space and AI, to interspecies relationships, and language viewed through different scripts, among many others.
About the Editor:
Anja Lutz is a book designer and co-founded the art book publisher The Green Box in 2006. She was the initiator and art director of the international art and design project shift!. She received the European Adobe Design Award, served as a visiting professor at the American University of Beirut, taught as a lecturer at the Bauhaus University Weimar and the Berlin University of the Arts, and was a fellow at the Akademie Schloss Solitude and the Jan van Eyck Academy. Her design work is inspired by her passion for art. Anja Lutz lives in Berlin.
About the Moderator:
A previous PrintRoom collaborator, Clara Balaguer a.k.a. The OCD, Hardworking Goodlooking, To Be Determined, and Galley Copy Shoppe is a cultural worker, program builder, and grey literature circulator nested at XPUB (MFA Experimental Publishing), Piet Zwart Instituut, Rotterdam and Design Department, Sandberg Instituut, Amsterdam.