Officina Bodoni
Encyclopedia
The Officina Bodoni was a private press
operated by Giovanni (originally Hans) Mardersteig (1892–1977) from 1922. It was named after the great eighteenth-century Italian typographer Giambattista Bodoni
. Operating initially from Montagnola
di Lugano in Switzerland
, Mardersteig moved his press to Verona
, Italy, in 1927, partly in order to print a state-funded edition of the complete works of Gabriele D'Annunzio
, which was completed in 1936. Mardersteig quickly developed a reputation for very fine typographical work, and for his scholarly approach to book design and production. He printed with a Dingler hand press on hand or mould-made papers or vellum
, and often had his books bound in quarter vellum or leather with a decorated paper on the boards, in the tradition of European private presses.
Mardersteig was responsible for designing several typefaces for use at the press – Dante, Griffo and Zeno among them – all based on Humanist types of the early years of European printing
; the punches for all three types were cut by Charles Malin. He was also involved with other twentieth-century type revivals, and was instrumental in designing Fontana for Collins Cleartype of Glasgow in the 1930s.
The Officina Bodoni printed and published some 200 books and pamphlets, including reprints of a number of early treatises on the book arts, notably on letter-forms and calligraphy, as well as literary and bibliographical works of all sorts, often commissioned by other publishers and institutions. Mardersteig printed books for the Limited Editions Club of New York, Duval and Hamilton and Faber and Faber
among others. For the last, he printed new editions of T. S. Eliot
's poems The Waste Land
(1961) and Four Quartets
(1960).
From 1948, Mardersteig also ran a mechanized press which he named the Stamperia Valdonega. Here he was able to produce books in larger editions, and more quickly, but still applying the same standards of typographical excellence. Following Mardersteig's death in 1977 his son, Martino Mardersteig, took over the running of the Stamperia Valdonega, and still occasionally used the Officina Bodoni imprint for works he printed on his father's hand-presses.
The books of the Officina Bodoni are widely collected, and generally admired by typographers and bibliophiles. There are good collections in many major European and American libraries. The Bodleian Library
at Oxford
holds a particularly rich collection, based partly on books and ephemera acquired from the typographical scholar John Ryder.
Private press
Private press is a term used in the field of book collecting to describe a printing press operated as an artistic or craft-based endeavor, rather than as a purely commercial venture...
operated by Giovanni (originally Hans) Mardersteig (1892–1977) from 1922. It was named after the great eighteenth-century Italian typographer Giambattista Bodoni
Giambattista Bodoni
Giambattista Bodoni was an Italian engraver, publisher, printer and typographer of high repute remembered for designing a family of different typefaces called Bodoni....
. Operating initially from Montagnola
Montagnola
Montagnola is a small Swiss village in Collina d'Oro municipality. Located in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, it is close to the border between Switzerland and Italy. It looks over Lake Lugano and the city of Lugano upon it...
di Lugano in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Mardersteig moved his press to Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, Italy, in 1927, partly in order to print a state-funded edition of the complete works of Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio or d'Annunzio was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, and dramatist...
, which was completed in 1936. Mardersteig quickly developed a reputation for very fine typographical work, and for his scholarly approach to book design and production. He printed with a Dingler hand press on hand or mould-made papers or vellum
Vellum
Vellum is mammal skin prepared for writing or printing on, to produce single pages, scrolls, codices or books. It is generally smooth and durable, although there are great variations depending on preparation, the quality of the skin and the type of animal used...
, and often had his books bound in quarter vellum or leather with a decorated paper on the boards, in the tradition of European private presses.
Mardersteig was responsible for designing several typefaces for use at the press – Dante, Griffo and Zeno among them – all based on Humanist types of the early years of European printing
Printing
Printing is a process for reproducing text and image, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing....
; the punches for all three types were cut by Charles Malin. He was also involved with other twentieth-century type revivals, and was instrumental in designing Fontana for Collins Cleartype of Glasgow in the 1930s.
The Officina Bodoni printed and published some 200 books and pamphlets, including reprints of a number of early treatises on the book arts, notably on letter-forms and calligraphy, as well as literary and bibliographical works of all sorts, often commissioned by other publishers and institutions. Mardersteig printed books for the Limited Editions Club of New York, Duval and Hamilton and Faber and Faber
Faber and Faber
Faber and Faber Limited, often abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in the UK, notable in particular for publishing a great deal of poetry and for its former editor T. S. Eliot. Faber has a rich tradition of publishing a wide range of fiction, non fiction, drama, film and music...
among others. For the last, he printed new editions of T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
's poems The Waste Land
The Waste Land
The Waste Land[A] is a 434-line[B] modernist poem by T. S. Eliot published in 1922. It has been called "one of the most important poems of the 20th century." Despite the poem's obscurity—its shifts between satire and prophecy, its abrupt and unannounced changes of speaker, location and time, its...
(1961) and Four Quartets
Four Quartets
Four Quartets is a set of four poems written by T. S. Eliot that were published individually over a six-year period. The first poem, "Burnt Norton", was written and published with a collection of his early works following the production of Eliot's play Murder in the Cathedral...
(1960).
From 1948, Mardersteig also ran a mechanized press which he named the Stamperia Valdonega. Here he was able to produce books in larger editions, and more quickly, but still applying the same standards of typographical excellence. Following Mardersteig's death in 1977 his son, Martino Mardersteig, took over the running of the Stamperia Valdonega, and still occasionally used the Officina Bodoni imprint for works he printed on his father's hand-presses.
The books of the Officina Bodoni are widely collected, and generally admired by typographers and bibliophiles. There are good collections in many major European and American libraries. The Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
at Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
holds a particularly rich collection, based partly on books and ephemera acquired from the typographical scholar John Ryder.