20.7. - 24.11.24: Same Bold Stories? Typeface design by women and queers in the 20th and 21st centuries

For a long time, the history of type design and typography was presented from a purely male perspective. Now, research in the field of type design is increasingly turning its attention to women, who were already active in type production at the beginning of the 20th century without really becoming visible.
The exhibition "Same Bold Stories?" sets itself the task of researching the Klingspor Museum's historical type-related collection (1900 - 1950) for these female positions and supplementing the historiography of type design with their biographies and works. Only a few women such as Anna Simons, Erika Giovanna Klien or Gudrun Zapf-von Hesse achieved greater fame during their lifetime. In addition, there are type designers such as Elizabeth Friedländer, Ilse Schüle, Anna Maria Schildbach, Maria Ballé and numerous female students, for example of Rudolf von Larisch's type classes in Vienna and Rudolf Koch's in Offenbach, who are included in the collection and are now coming into focus for the first time.
Starting from the historical collection, an arc is drawn to contemporary type design - by people who identify as FLINTA* (women, lesbians, inter*, non-binary, trans* and agender). Self-confident and innovative, they not only help shape typefaces, but also the international type scene. Ideas of collective work are applied here and solidarity-based distribution channels stand alongside traditional distribution in type foundries. The boundary between application and art is often blurred, so that exciting content concepts trigger a new way of thinking about type design and typography in the 21st century. Émilie Aurat, Jin-Hoo Park, Golnar Kat Rahmani and Nat Pyper are just some of the many names that are brought together and contextualized in the exhibition.
The historical and contemporary positions are interwoven across all thematic areas, whereby the exhibition itself fits into a historiography based on the principle of "messy history". The exhibition does not claim to be complete, but gradually brings more fragments into the light. By juxtaposing these sometimes very different perspectives, a new reading of history emerges.

A book accompanying the exhibition will be published on August 23 and offers an informative and theoretical extension to the exhibited works. Articles and interviews with contemporary actors from the type scene, such as ALT.tf, Nadine Chahine, Katharina Koch, Laura Meseguer and Teal Triggs, make it clear that historiography is rarely complete and that gaps can only be filled, if at all, by consciously engaging with them.

The concept for the exhibition was developed in cooperation between the Klingspor Museum, the design studio turbo type and the feminist collective +FEM.
The exhibition is sponsored by Kulturfonds FrankfurtRheinMain.

Opening ceremony with KVTV and music by GG VYBE on Friday, July 19, 2024, 6 pm

For a long time, the history of type design and typography was presented from a purely male perspective. Now, research in the field of type design is increasingly focussing on the women who were already active in type production at the beginning of the 20th century without really becoming visible.
The exhibition 'Same Bold Stories?' sets itself the task of researching the Klingspor Museum's historical type-related collection (1900 - 1950) for these female positions and supplementing the historiography of type design with their biographies and works. Only a few women such as Anna Simons, Erika Giovanna Klien or Gudrun Zapf-von Hesse achieved greater fame during their lifetime. In addition, there are type designers such as Elizabeth Friedländer, Ilse Schüle, Anna Maria Schildbach, Maria Ballé and numerous female students, for example of Rudolf von Larisch's type classes in Vienna and Rudolf Koch's in Offenbach, who are included in the collection and are now coming into focus for the first time.
Starting from the historical collection, an arc is drawn to contemporary type design - by people who identify as FLINTA* (women, lesbians, inter*, non binary, trans* and agender). Self-confident and innovative, they not only help shape typefaces, but also the international type scene. Ideas of collective work are applied here and solidarity-based distribution channels exist alongside traditional distribution in type foundries. The boundary between application and art is often blurred, so that exciting content concepts trigger a new way of thinking about type design and typography in the 21st century. Émilie Aurat, Jin-Hoo Park, Golnar Kat Rahmani and Nat Pyper are just some of the many names that are brought together and contextualized in the exhibition.
The historical and contemporary positions are also interwoven across all thematic areas, which means that the exhibition itself fits into a historiography based on the principle of 'messy history'. The exhibition does not claim to be complete, but rather gradually brings more fragments into the light. By juxtaposing these sometimes very different perspectives, a new reading of history emerges.

A book accompanying the exhibition will be published on August 23 and offers an informative and theoretical extension to the exhibited works. Through articles and interviews with contemporary actors in the type scene, such as ALT.tf, Nadine Chahine, Katharina Koch, Laura Meseguer and Teal Triggs, it becomes clear that historiography is rarely complete and that gaps can only be filled, if at all, by consciously engaging with them.

The concept for the exhibition was developed in co-operation between the Klingspor Museum, the design studio turbo type and the feminist collective +FEM.
The exhibition is sponsored by the Kulturfonds FrankfurtRheinMain.
English text translated with DeepL.com (free version)

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 1 to 6 p.m,
Friday 2 to 9 pm,
Saturday, Sunday 11 am to 6 pm,
Closed on October 3.

Also open on mornings for registered groups!

15.11.: Due to an event and the associated construction work, the exhibition "Same bold stories?" will only be accessible to a limited extent on November 15: from 2 to 5.45 p.m. a limited visit to the exhibition is possible, after that it is no longer possible.

Free admission for children and young people under 18,
reduced (people with severe disabilities, trainees, federal voluntary service, students, unemployed) 2.50 euros,
pensioners 3 euros,
adults 4 euros,
Combined ticket with Haus der Stadtgeschichte 5 euros,
free admission on Fridays

26.07., 6 pm
Curator's tour: Contemporary practice in type design
Laura Brunner
Admission by choice

11.08., 3 pm
Curator's tour: Politics in type design
Naomi Rado
Admission by choice

23.08., 5 pm
Curator guided tour: Historical positions
Dr. Dorothee Ader, Tatjana Prenzel
Admission by choice

6.30 pm
Party for the book release of the accompanying volume Same Bold Stories?

30.08., 7 pm, postponed to 27.09. due to illness.
How Many Female Type Designers Do You Know?
Lecture in English, Yulia Popova
Admission of your choice

30.8.- 01.09., 10:00 - 17:00 each day
Typo reloaded: Text experiments, type, book.
Lead typesetting workshop with Marina Kampka and Uta Schneider in the printing workshop in the Bernardbau
With registration, costs 225€ (incl. material fee)

06.09., 6 pm, canceled due to illness!
copy and paste
Performance Paula Schulenburg and Lisa Nürnberger

13.09., 7 pm
Intrusive types - On the aesthetic-political dimension of typography
Lecture, Dr. Felix Kosok
Admission by choice

20.09., 6 pm
Curator's tour: Gender stereotypes in type design
Leonie Martin
Admission by choice

21.09., 18:00
Alphabet soup + cinema: Screening of the film Graphic Means by Briar Levit (OV)
Studio in the Walterpassage (Frankfurter Str. 13-15)
Admission and food/drinks on a donation basis

27.09., 7 pm
How Many Female Type Designers Do You Know?
Lecture in English, Yulia Popova
Admission of your choice

29.09., 4 p.m.
"Age is no barrier to the art of writing..." - Selected female artists from the collection of the Klingspor Museum
Lecture, Dr. Stefan Soltek
Admission + 1,50 Euro

11.10., 6 p.m.
Women's Type of Underwear
Screen printing workshop on your own clothing with Sonja Yakovleva
Admission of your choice

17.10., 6 p.m.
Read Me Draw Me. Type Design from the perspective of feminist and queer texts in relation to design
Presentation of student works from the HfG Offenbach from the summer semester 2024
Supervised by Johanna Siebein and Bruno Jacoby

02.11, 2-5 p.m.
Let's Talk About Money
Negotiation workshop for FLINTA*, Anja Henningsmeyer
With registration, solidarity participation fee, approximate value 20 euros

03.11., 4 pm
Significant Other(ing) - Messy History as a feminist counter-concept of art and design historiography
Lecture, Naomi Rado
Admission + 1,50 Euro

09.11., 11 am - 4 pm
Type & Politics
Lecture and screen printing workshop with Golnar Kat Rahmani in the print workshop in the Bernardbau
With registration, 30 euros participation + 15 euros material

22.11., from 6 pm
Eat It by the Creek - Performative evening with drag
Admission of your choice

24.11., 3 pm
Finissage with guided tour by the curator
Dr. Dorothee Ader, Laura Brunner, Naomi Rado
Admission free

5 pm Networking meeting for type designers

The Klingspor Museum is barrier-free.
A small elevator overcomes the six steps from the entrance to the foyer.
From the foyer, you can reach the 1st and 2nd floors by elevator. The elevator also goes down to the basement, where the toilets are located.
As our entrance door does not open automatically, wheelchair users are welcome to call our reception staff before visiting (Tel.: 069 / 8065-2164).
A tactile floor guidance system facilitates orientation for people with visual impairments.