The Bienal Sesc_Videobrasil is an exhibition that focuses on the work of artists from the world’s geopolitical South – Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia and the Middle East – in video art and various other artistic media.

The theme for the 22nd edition, which also celebrated the 40th anniversary of Associação Cultural Videobrasil, is a phrase by Brazilian poet Waly Salomão: “Memory is an island of editing”. The poet is known for his informality, the idea of lack of control and abandon. The verse speaks of memory as something that is not precise, that can be edited, in a fragmentary, random and shuffled fashion.

For the identity, we associated the idea of memory with the image of the glitch (error, visual noise). To represent this concept, we used Neue Television from nice to type. This typeface incorporates the horizontal lines of video playback into its design, which are normally invisible, suggesting an error or glitch.

The identity is composed as a typographic illustration, with fragments of text, noise, color and vibration in the background.

In the foreground, for the informative text, we used Area by Blaze Type, with its lean and uncomplicated design, to contrast with the complexity of Neue Television. For some texts including “A memória é uma ilha de edição”, Area was used with its geometric alternates.

The color palette chosen is reminiscent of the festive, vibrant and pop atmosphere of Waly Salomão’s universe.

Together with the jagged wave lines, Klaus Richter’s striped Television (Mecanorma, 1975) creates a relevant technical look for the cover of Peter Manning’s Electronic & Computer Music. First published in hardback in 1985, this is the paperback edition from 1987. The book was set by Hope Services, Abingdon. It’s not clear if they designed the cover, too.

“BUZZ OFF” bookmark

I came across a small collection of vintage bookmarks, of which the most interesting and charming are these two from Sunshine Thoughts, a trademark of Antioch Publishing Company.

These bookmarks are the sort of thing that would be sold at a counter display in bookshops and museum giftshops in the 1980s (at least, judging from my own experience of the 1980s).

“BUZZ OFF” is in Television, with the TV tube’s scanlines and the bouncing baseline being a sort of synaesthetic reference to the bee’s flight and sound.

The rounded sans used for “I’m trying to read!” is Formula.

The font in the “book worm Strikes Again” bookmark is Octopuss. The bookmark itself is modelled after a worm-ridden piece of wood, with real holes punched into it.

One the back the “Sunshine Thoughts” wordmark is in Corporate Image, note the two forms of t.

The UK copyright notice is in Optima, and the US copyright notice looks like Helvetica Condensed.

Reverse of “BUZZ OFF”; Copyright 1985

“Book worm” bookmark

Reverse of “book worm”; Copyright 1976; Made in U.S.A.

Television (Mecanorma, 1975) on the cover of the first edition of The Feelies, a cyberpunk science fiction novel by Mick Farren with illustrations by Chris Welch, published by Big O in 1978. You can read more about the book on Trash Fiction.

Some of the scan lines in Klaus Richter’s typeface design were extended to the left and right, adding a flickering glitch-like effect to the words. The format of dry transfer lettering lends itself to such additions – one could simply use parts of leftover glyphs for the “speed lines”.

[More info on ISFDB]

Digital release.

Discogs:

Shox were a post-punk trio comprising Mike Atkinson, Jacqui Brookes and John Peters. Their sole release was [this single] issued on the pre-4AD label Axis. Pop with an electronic twist, it was likened to early Human League by the NME. … Was one of the four singles released by Axis, the Beggars Banquet off-shoot that would be renamed 4AD later in 1980. This single was later reissued directly on Beggars Banquet.

Note that the Mecanorma (dry transfer) typeface, Television, was set properly tight, so the scan lines of each letter merge together. Unfortunately, in the digital artwork (above), the ‘OX’ is not quite aligned with the ‘SH’.

Axis release (back). The small type is in Univers featuring its original ‘Et’-like ampersand.

Beggars Banquet release (back).