Thomas, Angela

Kooperativa Förbundets Bokförlag, Stockholm. 1947. 269 pp. Red cloth spine. Lower corners bumped and outer margins of the cover tiny scuffed. A really nice copy of this extremely scarce first translation of The Hobbit, also the only translation of the Hobbit from the first UK edition before the changes Tolkien made to the text after writing the Lord of the Rings, and the first translation of any of the author's books. Translation by Tore Zetterholm. Cover and maps by Charles Sjöblom. Drawings by Torbjörn Zetterholm. First Swedish edition of "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again" (1937). Hompen, eller En resa dit och tillbaksigen ("The Hobbit, or A journey there and back again"), translated to Swedish by Tore Zetterholm, was the first non-English edition of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit (and thus the first translation of any work by Tolkien). The book was illustrated by Torbjörn Zetterholm (interior illustrations) and Charles Sjöblom (cover and maps).This item is a must for all serious collectors of Tolkien.

Bokförlaget Arena, 1999-2000. 188 + 199 + 267 + 175 s. (24 x 23 cm). Svarta klotband med guldpräglad rygg- och pärmtitel. Skyddsomslag. Banden förvaras i en svart, klotklädd kassett med två vita stora bokstäver XL. Illustrerade. Fyra volymer i nyskick.”Design=Ekonomi” gavs ursprungligen ut 1964 som en form av manifest med de överdrifter som alltid är nödvändiga för att väcka hösäckar. I denna nyutgåva har Olle Eksell strukit alla dessa överdrifter. Annars är materialet ganska orört med ett och annat tillägg.”Mina ögonblick” handlar om Olle Eksell från det att han är två år och följer honom i princip till idag. Den bygger på små korta historier om möten, jobb, människor han träffat, och intressanta människor som bidragit till hans utveckling. Mina ögonblick visar hur du utvecklas som människa och yrkesmänniska.”Typiska arbeten” innehåller helt enkelt typiska arbeten av Olle Eksell. Här finner du det du sett och känner igen och det som hittills ingen har sett: profilprogram, affischer, annonser, utställningar, etiketter, förpackningar, broschyrer, bokomslag, barnböcker, de refuserades salong med mera.”Formulerat” är fem fantastiskt fina formuleringar som ger läsaren kunskap och inblick i den värld som Olle Eksell så villigt, begåvat och generöst delar med sig av. Olle Eksell är visionären och designern som redan på 60-talet talar om att form, design och ekonomi hänger ihop.

Institut Suédois, Paris. 2025. 232 pages. Soft cover. Illustrated in colour and b/w. Text: Stina Gromark, Pontus Hultén, Ron Hunt. Interviews with Lutz Jahre & Ron Hunt. Text in English. New copy. Important reference.Pontus Hultén (1924–2006) was a pioneering art curator who fundamentally reshaped the relationship between art, museums and society. He played a pivotal role in founding cultural institutions such as Moderna Museet, Centre Pompidou and MoMA. His curatorial practice was known for merging art with everyday life, making art accessible and dynamic, and taking it beyond traditional museum walls. Less known is his engagement with graphic design. For him print was a space for experimentation, a dialogue abetween artists, designers, and writers. The book showcases exhibition catalogs, posters, invitations, programs, and visual identities, orchestrated by Hultén in collaboration with artists, curators, designers, editors, writers, and printers. Keep Smiling! The Printed Universe of Pontus Hultén is a portrait through printed matter that not only documents his extensive exhibition output, but also embodies his anarchistic spirit. Hultén’s anarchism was playful, creative, sarcastic, free-spirited, inventive, and utopian. Many critical clues rejecting hierarchy and capitalism are embedded throughout the collection. Perhaps echoing the anarchist ideas of Max Stirner, Hultén believed that each graphic object possesses its own right to character and individuality. Its design should reflect not only its content – the written and printed words – but also the creator behind it. It should serve as a mediator for the invisible. The ‘aura’ of each object emerged from a dynamic relationship between content and form, where the form often shifted to suit the subject. Materials were carefully chosen to evoke the desired aura or message, and novel printing techniques – frequently pushing the boundaries of what was technically possible at the time – were employed to bring these concepts to life. The book is a result of a ten years research and collecting of the printed legacy of Pontus Hultén by graphic designer Stina Gromark. It showcases approximately 200 graphic objects, organised thematicly in chapters that intentionally doesn’t follow a chronological order. Included are writings by Pontus Hultén, where he reflects on exhibition catalogues from 1995, as well as a text by curator and art historian Ron Hunt. The book also features a conversation with Ron Hunt and an interview with Lutz Jahre, librarian and writer of ”Das gedruckte museum von Pontus Hultén” (The Printed Museum by Pontus Hultén). The book was launched in conjunction with the exhibition Keep Smiling! L’univers imprimé par Pontus Hultén at Institut Suédois in Paris (27 March – 21 September 2025).

ITC, New York. 1974-87. Ca. 1750 pages. Tall, narrow 4to (30,5 x 15,5 cm). Stapled. A huge lot of ITC type specimens booklets. To be exact; 50 different type specimens. They are amazing!Text blocks plus alphabet showings for sizes 6, 7, 8, 9,10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 24 points. Alphabet length in points for each text point size shown. These relate to an easy-to-use copyfitting chart at the back of the book.The list: American Typewriter, Avant Garde, Avant Garde Gothic Condensed, Barcelona, Bauhaus, Benguiat, Benguiat Condensed, Benguiat Gothic, Berkeley Old Style, Bookman, Caslon No. 224, Century, Cheltenham, Clearface, Cushing, Elan, Eras, Esprit, Fenice, Friz Quadrata, Galliard, Gamma, Garamond, Goudy Sans, Isbell, Italia, Kabel, Korinna, Leawood, Lubalin Graph, Mixage, Modern No. 216, New Baskerville, Newtext, Novarese, Pacella, Quorum, Serif Gothic, Slimbach, Souvenir, Symbol, Tiepolo, Tiffany, Usherwood, Veljovic, Weidemann, Zapf Book, Zapf Chancery, Zapf Dingbats, Zapf International.

Utställningsaffisch för Södertälje Konsthall, ”Hjärtat sitter till vänster”, 4 september-17 oktober 1999. (70 x ) 100 cm). Nyskick!Detta var en, viktig och uppmärksammad, vandringsutställning om startade i Göteborg, 1998, och gick vidare till Luleå, Uppsala och avslutades i Södertälje.

Harper & Brothers, New York. 1948. xii, 200 pages. Black cloth, spine lettered and stamped in gold, no dust jacket. Top of spine somewhat worn. Numerous illustrations in b/w. Typography, illustrations, binding, jacket by WAD. AIGA Fifty Books, 1928. Revised edition, becoming quite scarce in any edition. (Agner 28.02).“In 1928 Dwiggins wrote ‘Layout in Advertising’, probably the best text on the subject that had ever been published in America. Despite some ephemeral material, much of this book continues to be valuable to contemporary designers, for it is written with style and without dogma.” Alexander Lawson: Anatomy of a Typeface p. 246.