Mostly Books

The name of Anne Hoffmann is instinctively related by many artists, architects, museum people, and especially by book-lovers, to the range of media the Danish-born Swiss book and graphic designer has created over the course of three decades: posters, flyers, cards, CD booklets, and – above all – countless books. Hoffmann came to Basel in the 1980s to study with Armin Hofmann, one of Switzerland’s preeminent graphic designers and teachers of his art, at the city’s School of Design. In Basel she also established her own studio in 1986, which she moved to Zurich in 2007, and soon began working closely with Swiss and international artists such as Silvia Bächli, Richard Hamilton, or Karim Noureldin. In Mostly Books, naturally designed by studio Anne Hoffmann Graphic Design, she reviews thirty years of work. The selection comprises some 120 objects, featured in an annotated book diary. Besides this panorama, the book explores the topic of graphic design from a variety of perspectives. Statements by artists Chris Bünter, Miriam Cahn, and Claudio Moser; architect Kana Ueda Thoma; author and curator Peter Suter; jewellery designer Torben Hardenberg; museum director and curator Beat Wismer; musician Jürg Halter; and scholar Etienne Lullin reflect on the importance of the book per se and its design. Text in English and German.