“Petite Planète” guidebook series, Éditions du Seuil
Guidebook series originally published by Éditions du Seuill in their Collections Microcosme, France 1954–1970, initially directed by Chris Marker (1921–2012) and later by Juliette Caputo. Each edition is devoted to one country and includes trave information and photographs.
The names of the destinations are set in caps from Pharaon, a slab serif (or Egyptienne) issued by French foundry Deberny & Peignot in 1933. The typeface came in three weights plus an all-caps style decorated with lines, named Pharaon Blanc. Some covers like the one for Grande-Bretagne appear to show a condensed variant, which isn’t listed in a mid-century specimen, and might be generated photographically. The “Petite Planète” series title is shown in caps from what appears to be Simplex. This was Fonderie Olive’s name for Berthold-Grotesk. Note that its design is quite different across the sizes. Several of the volumes were reissued with new cover designs, compare e.g. Suisse and Tunisie in the first and second images.
From Late Spring Books:
The collection is notable for its photographic contributions from Marker’s colleagues such as Agnes Varda, William Klein and Cartier Bresson, as well as Robert Capa and Brassai; alongside imagery from his own travels and personal archives. The series is playful in its style frequently employing poems, song lyrics, cartoons and a colourful illustrated fold-out map on the back end papers. Marker’s aspiration was to avoid the propaganda familiar to the guidebook genre, imagining a certain intimacy in tone: “Not a guidebook, not a history book, not a propaganda brochure, not a traveller’s impressions, but instead equivalent to the conversation we would like to have with someone intelligent and well versed in the country that interests us”.
For more information and images, including some of the interiors, see Late Spring Books, Index Grafik, chrismarker.org, and Fabula.
A complete run of all 31 volumes with contributions from Chris Marker is available from Light Industry.
In 2006, Marker and Jason Simon made a poster depicting the covers of all Petite Planète guides issued between 1954 and 1964. While the limited edition by Light Industry is sold out, unsigned copies may still be available through Callicoon Fine Arts.
Autriche (n° 1, 1954).
Brésil (n° 20, 1958).
URSS (n° 23, 1959).
Egypte (n° 30, 1962).
4 Comments on ““Petite Planète” guidebook series, Éditions du Seuil”
Here’s a more detailed (yet incomplete) list of designers, from the issues I have at hand: issue 1 by Chris Marker and Marie-Jeanne Noirot, issues 2 and 4 by CM, issues 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 15 and 18 by CM and Juliette Caputo, issue 22 by JC and Simone Cayet, issue 23 by JC, issue 26 by JC and Dominique Lyon-Caen, issue 32 by JC and Mathilde Rieussec.
Much appreciated, Adrien!
An updated (yet still incomplete) list of designers, adding a couple of names: issue 1 by Chris Marker and Marie-Jeanne Noirot, issues 2 and 4 by CM, issues 3, 5–7, 9–10, 15–16 and 18 by CM and Juliette Caputo, issue 11 by Anne Wolff, issues 20, 23–25 and 31 by JC, issue 22 by JC and Simone Cayet, issues 26 and 30 by JC and Dominique Lyon-Caen, issue 29 by JC and Martine Rio, issue 32 by JC and Mathilde Rieussec, issue 33 by MR, issues 36–37 by Marie-Josèphe Philippon. Issue 8 is not signed (and assumed to be by CM and JC).
Adding some extra information about the design from the issues I have which were not mentioned above. Issue 12 (Turquie): Anne Wolff; Issue 13 (Chine): Juliette Caputo; Issue 14 (Iran): JC; Issue 21 (Japon): JC, assisted by Dominique Lyon-Caen.