Iranian Typography

Last Spring as we were planning Typecon in Buffalo, I was fortunate enough to get to York University in Toronto to see the ‘50 Years of Iranian Typography’ exhibition in person. The exhibit was originated in Basel Switzerland in 2007. We didn't have the resources to bring the exhibit to Typecon and be the first to show it in the US, but I truly wish we could have. The range and inventiveness of the work seen in the exhibit and the accompanying book is breathtaking. Similar no doubt to Americans seeing works from the Eastern Bloc countries such as Poland and the Czechoslovakia at the fall of the iron curtain. Being able to see the expressive graphic art of "the enemy" may just help to de-demonize, and even *gasp* humanize a culture that has been kept at arms length. Below are a few on my favorite posters from the book. Several other images can be seen here.