Franco Grignani: Graphic and Typographic Freedom (11/22/2020) Posted in: videos - This lecture delved into Franco Grignani's innovative use of typography and graphic elements in advertising design spanning from the late 1940s to the 1970s. During his lecture at Vision 65, the first World Congress on New Challenges to… ... Read More
A whole life timeline (11/15/2020) Posted in: stories - Even looking back on his work as a whole, it’s impossible to confine Grignani to a specific movement, not least because he made a point to be different from everyone else.Despite his solitary research, he was highly influential… ... Read More
Two hundred exhibitions… (11/8/2020) Posted in: exhibits - The relevance of Franco Grignani's work and the continual evolution of his graphics, as well as the coherence of his methods, have always aroused lively interest among talented graphic designers. His experimental works and creations are still preserved… ... Read More
The full set of ads for Alfieri & Lacroix (9/15/2024) Posted in: stories - After hundreds of man-hours of dedication, I am excited to present a rare and meticulously curated collection of more than 170 ads designed by Franco Grignani for Alfieri & Lacroix, spanning the years from 1952 through the 1970s.… ... Read More
Trademarks (9/18/2022) Posted in: stories - This text by Franco Grignani was originally published in English as the introduction to the 1967 volume "3x trademarks", published by the Total Design agency in Amsterdam, with Wim Crouwel among its founders. A slightly modified Italian version… ... Read More
Art and Science: Franco with some nuclear scientists (9/19/2021) Posted in: exhibits, stories - What was a graphic designer like Franco Grignani doing collaborating with two nuclear scientists from Euratom? Frequently, science and art are perceived as the 'two cultures' that seem to segregate our society into distinct factions. Nevertheless, certain pivotal… ... Read More
Some noteworthy works about Franco (9/5/2021) Posted in: edu - Franco Grignani's work continues to be influential and relevant, attracting students of all ages who produce noteworthy works inspired by his art. Here are some recent examples found on the web, along with others already published on this… ... Read More
A monograph on Jeanne Grignani (7/11/2021) Posted in: books, edu - Since 2014, first-year students at the School of Design of the Polytechnic in Milan (Scuola di Design Politecnico di Milano) have been participating in the creation of a series focused on 20th-century communication designers. This series is known… ... Read More
A virtual exhibit on Alfieri & Lacroix (7/4/2021) Posted in: exhibits - During the COVID-19 pandemic, various web platforms for virtual exhibitions and events have emerged. Here is my personal contribution on Artsteps. In this exhibit, you will find 80 advertisements out of the c.ca 170 created by Franco Grignani… ... Read More
The hyperbolics revealed (11/1/2020) Posted in: tips & tricks - In 1991 at the age of 83, Franco Grignani painted Two hyperbolic corners (Due angoli iperbolici) using black tempera. This painting is presented in a 51x51 cm format on Schoeller cardboard.Grignani donated this artwork to the painter Lorenzo… ... Read More
A colour-blind artist (10/25/2020) Posted in: stories - 'It's All Black And White' was the motto of a recent exhibition in London dedicated to Franco Grignani. However, not all of his artistic production was monochromatic, despite his colour blindness! In fact, Grignani created hundreds of colourful… ... Read More
America! (10/18/2020) Posted in: exhibits, stories - As Patricia Belen and Greg D'Onofrio have recently highlighted in a book associated with a recent exhibition in New York titled 'Italian Types, Graphic Designers from Italy in America', "the arrival of ambitious and original thinkers from the… ... Read More
Vision 65 (10/11/2020) Posted in: stories - The 'Vision 65' conference, formally titled ''Vision 65: World Congress on New Challenges to Human Communication', took place at the Southern Illinois University of Carbondale from October 21 to 23, 1965 (amid the early stages of student protests… ... Read More
Typomundus 20 & 20/2 (10/4/2020) Posted in: stories - Covering the years 1963–1966, Typomundus 20 represented an international travelling exhibition of juried typographic design works that sought to represent a collected world of typography as art. With an initial call for entries in 1963, Typomundus received around… ... Read More
The Golden Palm-Tree for Advertising (9/27/2020) Posted in: stories, videos - "Italy's few commercial artists are self-instructed. The absence of a strong tradition and the lack of specialised schools explain the need for foreign contacts, already severely tested by the long years of isolation, when the production of the… ... Read More
The quite strange story of the best logo ever (9/20/2020) Posted in: stories, videos - 2014 marked its 50th anniversary: We're all familiar with it. Woolmark logo - applied to more than five billion items worldwide - is frequently credited for being a concise and powerful symbol. In fact, in 2011, Creative Review,… ... Read More
Logotypes (9/13/2020) Posted in: stories - This text has been taken from the Italian version published in Franco Grignani – pitture, sperimentali, grafica – Ricerca come arte, exhibition catalogue, Rondòttanta Centro culturale, Sesto San Giovanni, 1979. The same article was subsequently republished on the… ... Read More
The strange story of the Piaggio logo contest (9/6/2020) Posted in: stories - The Piaggio & C. Company of Genoa, founded by Rinaldo Piaggio in 1884, initially specialized in locomotives and railway carriages. Towards the end of the First World War, it transitioned to the military sector and subsequently expanded its… ... Read More
Dompé (8/30/2020) Posted in: stories - "The years since the war have seen a tremendous growth in the field of medicine. This has become the golden era of antibiotics and metabolic agents, the fulfilment of the dreams of Ehrlich and Pasteur. As the industry… ... Read More
A&L (8/23/2020) Posted in: stories - (audio abstract - 2 mins) Alfieri & Lacroix (to be pronounced as 'Lah-crwàh') holds a significant role in the history of the Italian graphic industry. Established in Milan in 1898 by Edoardo Lacroix and Emilio Alfieri, Alfieri &… ... Read More
Sci-Fi for Penguin Books (8/16/2020) Posted in: stories - In 1968, amidst financial challenges at Penguin Books, the publishing house brought in David Pelham as the fresh art director for their fiction division. His initial step was to entrust Franco Grignani with designing the covers for sixteen… ... Read More
The ED Group (8/9/2020) Posted in: stories - During the latter half of the 1960s, Italy witnessed a period of redefining the roles of graphic and industrial design in society. Facing the advance of the American-style 'full service' advertising agencies (as Simona de Iulio and Carlo… ... Read More
Forma vs Helvetica (8/2/2020) Posted in: stories - While many of us use fonts in our word processing software on our computers, not everyone realizes that behind each typeface lies a story... Franco Grignani, Pubblicità in Italia, 1965 [1] Franco Grignani, as early as 1964, drew… ... Read More
Type: a graphic design lesson (7/26/2020) Posted in: exhibits - The poster showcased in the image above, with a dimension of 70 x 100 cm, was a special commission by Franco Grignani for Heinz Waibl (1931-2020). It was created for Waibl's 'Comunicazione Sperimentale TYPE' exhibition, consisting of 30… ... Read More
Family Portraits (7/19/2020) Posted in: stories - Franco took pleasure in weaving his family into specific personalized greeting cards or projects for Alfieri & Lacroix. Yet, he did it with a touch of subtlety, rendering them nearly imperceptible, much in the manner of his unobtrusive… ... Read More
Greetings! (7/12/2020) Posted in: stories - Sending New Year greetings to friends and acquaintances has forever held a special place in Franco's heart. He believed in the power of personal messages as a means to forge genuine connections, countering the impersonal nature of the… ... Read More
Who was Jeanne Grignani? (7/5/2020) Posted in: stories - Jeanne Grignani, originally born Jeanne Michot, was 'the great woman behind the great man'. Behind her shyness, she possessed a remarkable and strong personality. Jeanne Michot photographed by Franco Grignani (part.) Born on the first day of spring… ... Read More
The passion for boxing (6/28/2020) Posted in: stories - As an interesting anecdote, Franco Grignani was an avid boxing enthusiast, much to the dismay of his wife, who preferred watching figure skating on ice rather than the matches on TV. These advertisements from 1954 and 1962 vividly… ... Read More
A visionary classroom dedicated to Franco (6/21/2020) Posted in: edu, videos - In 2019, together with their students, the Professor of Art of Photography and Graphics Advertising Anita Pascale with the collaboration of Professors N. Barone, MR. Napoli, MC. Petroli of ISIS EUROPA in POMIGLIANO D'ARCO (Naples) implemented with their… ... Read More
How to make the Woolmark logo using Abobe Illustrator® (6/14/2020) Posted in: tips & tricks, videos - An increasing number of young individuals, whether they are designers or simply design enthusiasts, have developed a keen interest in the artistic contributions of Franco Grignani. In this video created by Emanuele Abrate (ITA), you can delve into… ... Read More
How to make the Galleria Peccolo logo using Abobe Illustrator® (6/7/2020) Posted in: tips & tricks, videos - In a previous post, we demonstrated the process of recreating the Woolmark logo using Adobe Illustrator®. In this video tutorial by Caio Pires, you will discover how to replicate Franco Grignani's iconic logo for the Peccolo Gallery, which… ... Read More
A lab in the School of Design of the Polytechnic in Milan (5/31/2020) Posted in: books, edu - Since 2014, students from the first year of the School of Design of the Polytechnic in Milan (Scuola di Design Politecnico di Milano) have actively contributed to the designverso series. This series is a dedicated exploration of 20th-century… ... Read More
A student’s flip-book… (5/24/2020) Posted in: books, edu - Franco Grignani's artistic legacy remains influential and continues to captivate a new generation of students, highlighting its enduring relevance. A student from the University Institute of Architecture in Venice (IUAV) published this work in 2007, and it is… ... Read More
Two exhibition catalogues in flip-book (5/17/2020) Posted in: books, exhibits - Two beautiful catalogues of recent exhibitions in Milan to flip on Issuu, with texts also in English. Franco Grignani: Il Rigore dell'Ambiguità - 10 A.M. Art, Milan - 23/01 - 2/04/2016 Franco Grignani: Subperception - 10 A.M. Art,… ... Read More
Polisensorialità: an open-air exhibit (5/10/2020) Posted in: exhibits, videos - An anthological exhibition (2019) at m.a.x. Museum in Chiasso, with a preview of greatly evocative graphic elements in the public square. [featured pic from SUPER-FROM, courtesy of Federica Delprino & Omar Tonella] ... Read More
A London exhibit to flip through (5/3/2020) Posted in: exhibits - Franco Grignani – M&L Fine Art, London – 01/06 – 27/07/2017, with an introduction by Serge Lemoine, former President of the Musée d’Orsay, Paris. [featured pic from Il Post & M&L FINE ART, courtesy of Matteo Lampertico] ... Read MoreLast Updated on 08/09/2024 by Emiliano