One notable creator, omitted in my previous blog discussing Topor, is Roman Cieslewicz. Cieslewicz, a close acquaintance of Topor who resided in Paris, rose to prominence in the 1960s with his graphic design for prestigious publications such as Vogue and Elle, as well as for various event posters.
For the Dutch, the Stedelijk Museum presented his work for the first time in 1973. A superb catalogue, crafted by Wim Crouwel, was published in commemoration of the exhibition. This showcase demonstrated the remarkable talent of Cieslewicz, with the majority of the collection featuring his poster designs over the span of two decades.
Cieslewicz stands as an exceptional artist, whose recognition in his lifetime was far less than what he receives today. In recent years, his books have piqued the interest of graphic art students worldwide, a testament to his rising popularity. It is only a matter of time before books on Cieslewicz become scarce collectibles.
The catalogue is currently available at www.ftn-books.com, a valuable addition to any collection.
www.ftn-books.com has several titles on or with Roman Ciesliewicz available.
Marten Toonder (1912-2005) was first introduced to comics at the young age of six, when his father, a sea captain, brought back some American newspapers. After graduating in 1931, Toonder traveled by boat to South America. In Buenos Aires, he discovered the work of cartoonist Dante Quinterno. This former employee of Walt Disney published a written drawing course; it was from him that Toonder learned the foundations of animation and comic anatomy, inspiring him to become a comic artist.
Upon his return to the Netherlands, Toonder became an illustrator for a printing and publishing company in Leiden. After several attempts at creating comics for newspapers, he got his first break in 1941 when he was asked to supply a daily comic to De Telegraaf. The editor at the time wanted captions with the drawings (instead of balloons, which would encourage laziness in reading), and Toonder provided illustrations and texts for his new comic, Tom Poes. Toonder stopped in 1944 but continued the story in the Volkskrant and later NRC Handelsblad. He continued to create new episodes until 1986, with a total of 177 stories covering 11,768 daily installments. The comic became one of the longest-running comics by a single author.
The success of Tom Poes paved the way for various other productions, including plays, ballets, compositions, films, and a wide range of commercial articles. To bring these to fruition, Toonder continued to run the studio he established during the war. In the post-war years, this studio grew to become one of Europe’s largest drawing studios. However, with increasing business activities encroaching upon his creative work, Toonder made the decision to move to Ireland in 1965 to devote himself to his comic strip. In addition to Tom Poes, he also designed other comic strips, wrote poetry, autobiographies, and created illustrations for various purposes. He even produced short experimental films using different techniques.
www.ftn-books.com has several Toonder titles available. among them the much acclaimed biography on Toonder.
After studying Photography and Audio/Visual Design at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam, The Netherlands (1992), his main focus has been the Urban Landscape in it’s broadest sense. Over the years early influences of the New Topographics have evolved into a diverse oeuvre about the control of landscape, lack of space, infrastructural issues and the pressure on time and space in contemporary metropolises, reflecting our ways of communication and it’s speed.
Now that the world has developed from separate cities with local activities to one world of (re)-presentation, that is photography, video, film, internet, games, news and entertainment, reality exists in the images that represent it. Focussing on the specific vs. the ordinary and the original vs. the copy, his work elaborates on this medium’s dualistic position. Lately, attention has shifted to the new centers of economic power, resulting in projects next to but including the United States and Asia over the last couple of years. He’s also working with architects like OMA/Rem Koolhaas, Herzog & de Meuron and MVRDV and on infrastructural and cultural projects like the Atelier HSL. Working with professionals in other media has influenced increasing diversity in approaching the contemporary environment. Thus, ‘The City’ is created with an ‘imaginery status’ of reality, where ‘real’ images are remporary. This ‘real’ is part of Sim-City: a micro-cosmos of urban existence. The city and it’s images are real and unreal at the same time.
His photoworks and videos are published widely and have been exhibitied in galleries and museums around the world, among which the Biennale of Venice, Italy (2001), Haunch of Venison, Zürich, CH (2005), Akinci Gallery, Amsterdam, NL (2009), and the Stedelijk Museum, Schiedam, NL. These works of art are collected around the world.
www.ftn-books.com has currently the MULTIPLICITY publication by van der Salm available.
I have been filling some Pinterest pages with items i have in my inventory and which i think are nice tos hare with other collectors. It contains some great and important poster and book designs from the last 70 years. Please share these and hopefully you will enjoy these Pinterest boards too.
I have created four boards which are filled regularly with all original photo’s by FTN . Feel free to join the boards and use the photographs for noncommercial usage. I expect to post over 15.000 items on Pinterest in the coming year.
There now are boards on the inventory of FTN books & Art, Stedelijk MUseum Amsterdam, Wim Crouwel, Willem Sandberg
About 10 years ago we/ I (in the Nethrelands )did not know about BLACK FRIDAY and its discounts, but since that time BLACK FRIDAY discounts have become established over here too.
The problem is that discounts are only given in the 4 days of the BF weekend, but i will change this al little bit.
+ a discount of 10% will be applicable until December 1st, 2024.
At www.ftn-books.com you will receive not only a 10% discount when you order from Friday 24th of November 00.01 hrs until Monday the 27th 23.59 hrs. a minimum of USD 100,– ( excluding postage).
Order over USD 100,– and use BF2310 to receive this immediate discount during the Black Friday weekend
After i have packed and sent your order you will receive a personal discount code by email which will be valid for ALL your purchases at www.ftn-books.com until the 1st of December 2024
This makes your order during the BF weekend much more attractive. Enjoy your shopping at www.ftn-books.com
Alex van Warmerdam (born in 1952) pursued his education at the Graphic School and the Gerrit Rietveld Academie. He is currently engaged in the fields of scriptwriting, acting, design, and directing for both theater and film. His notable achievements include winning the Golden Calf for Best Director twice, for Abel (1986) and The Northerners (1992), and the Golden Calf for Best Screenplay thrice, for Ober (2006), The Last Days of Emma Blank (2009), and Borgman (2013). Additionally, he has received numerous awards at international film festivals. In 2016, Alex, along with his brother Marc, was honored with the Golden Calf for Film Culture.
Regarding his directorial work in film and theater, van Warmerdam has established a strong international reputation. However, it is less well-known that he is also a fantastic all-round artist. www.ftn-books.com is now offering the monograph from 2010 that was published in conjunction with the exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam.
Raised in Villa Pueyrredón, Buenos Aires, Mordillo enjoyed his early years as the son of Spanish parents and developed a passion for drawing. In pursuit of his artistic aspirations, he acquired the title of Illustrator from the School of Journalism in 1948. Working with the animation team Burone Bruch, Mordillo beautifully brought to life classic children’s stories such as Perrault Tales, Schmid Tales, The Musicians of Bremen, and The Three Little Pigs, which were published by Codex. In 1952, Galas Studios was founded by Mordillo and his colleagues, focusing on animation production. Simultaneously, Mordillo pursued a promising career as an illustrator, making contributions to local magazines.
On the 7th of November, 1955, Mordillo embarked on an adventure to Lima, Peru, where he found himself employed as a freelance designer for the reputable advertising company McCann Erickson. In 1958, his skills in illustration were showcased in Aesop’s Fables and Samaniego for Editorial Iberia Lima.
After completing greeting-card illustrations for Hallmark Cards, a renowned company based in Kansas City, Mordillo set off to the United States in 1960, joining the esteemed Paramount Pictures Studios in New York. A significant milestone in his career was his involvement in the creation of two iconic characters, Popeye and Little Lulu, for a film performance. Additionally, he conceived two characters for the short film Trick for Tree.
Three years passed, and on the 20th of August, 1963, Mordillo experienced another transformative turn of events. This time, he embarked on a European journey, eventually arriving in Paris on the 19th of September. Initially, Mordillo found himself contributing humorous letters to Mic-Max Edition. In July 1966, he began collaborating with Le Pelerin magazine, followed shortly by Paris Match. By 1968, Mordillo’s work was gaining recognition around the globe, particularly in Germany’s Stern magazine. It was in Paris that he met his wife, Amparo Camarasa, and together, they tied the knot in 1969. This union blessed them with two children: Sebastian Jerome in 1970 and Cecile Isabelle in 1972.
In 1980, Mordillo relocated to Mallorca, Spain, where he assumed the role of President for the International Association of Authors of Comics and Cartoons (CFIA), headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. After spending 18 fruitful years in Spain, Mordillo returned to France in 1998. The subsequent year saw him participate in the esteemed Creative Workshop Zermatt in Switzerland.
In 2007, Mordillo delved into new artistic endeavors, experimenting with various materials such as acrylics, pastels, and crayons. The subsequent year, in collaboration with Art Petrus, Mordillo masterfully reproduced his artwork with astounding detail. During the same year, he released the Mordillo Collection, a numbered and autographed publication available on the internet.
www.ftn-books.com has the 1974 Stalling publication by Mordillo available.
I found this picture at the Herb Lubalin center who has this in its collection. A very nice and typical Willem Sandberg card to wish you a Merry Christmas in 1958.
an old wish, but a new one from me….. a Merry Christmas 2021
Joost Swarte has been drawinh and designing covers for well repected magazines for over four decades now. Drawing covers for Vrij Nederland, The New Yorker, Raw magazine and many more, but one contribution which has been continuing for over 30 years now,stands out and is for the Flemish magazine HUMO.
He made dozens and dozens of covers over the years and many of these were published in small portfolio’s. A collection well worth starting now. www.ftn-books.com has the portfolio “TWEE POLEN” now available. A beautiful start or addition for your Joost Swarte collection.
Maybe not as known as many of his contemporaries, but still known by those who specialize in small and scarce publications. I stumbled upon van Dijk and his publications some 10 years ago when i discovered 2 small publications published by the Brummelse Uitgeverij voort luxe werkjes. Both titled ” VARKENSLAPPEN ” but with a difference.
One published as a small book. the other in an envelope containig the illustrations as postcards. I tried to find moer information on bot of these publications , but only found that the van Dijk publications are publisehd in very small editrions of around 30 copies.
Both are published by the BRUMMELSE UITGEVERIJ VOOR LUXE WERKJES in 1977 and both are now for sale at www.ftn-books.com
Artist/ Author: Oliver Boberg
Title : Memorial
Publisher: Oliver Boberg
Measurements: Frame measures 51 x 42 cm. original C print is 35 x 25 cm.
Condition: mint
signed by Oliver Boberg in pen and numbered 14/20 from an edition of 20
