The Enric Bricall Library welcomes a new exhibition about Elizabeth Friedlander, (1903-1984) a graphic designer, typographer and calligrapher of German origin, who was part of the group of gifted designers who came to Britain as refugees from Nazi Germany in the thirties and made their mark on British printing.
In 1939 she settled in London where she developed most of her professional activity. She is the author of the typeface “Elizabeth”, created in Berlin in 1933, and of numerous designs for books by English publishers.
From 1949 she collaborated with Penguin Books, where Jan Tschichold commissioned her to design the covers for the Penguin Scores collection, a series of sheet music in landscape format decorated with printed papers. On other covers she demonstrated her ability for calligraphy with compositions based on borders and drawn letters.
Elizabeth Friedlander was a pioneer in the world of typography and graphic arts. A connoisseur of the roots of the craft, her work is part of the classical tradition that coexisted with the avant-garde throughout the twentieth century.
