SPQR Now by Tono Vizcaíno Estevan
SPQR Now, Imaginarios contemporáneos en torno a la antigua Roma (“SPQR Now, Contemporary Imaginaries of Ancient Rome”) was written by Tono Vizcaíno Estevan and published by Sans Soleil Ediciones, in a design by Carles Rodrigo Monzó.
During his fellowship at the Real Academia de España en Roma (Spanish Academy in Rome), archaeologist Tono Vizcaíno Estevan conducted research on the contemporary reception of the classical past. Its aim is to analyze the new languages generated by the confluence of Archeology and mass culture in the 21st century Rome.
This intersection serves as the foundation of the book’s design concept, blending ancient with contemporary inspired elements to create this contrast that defines its identity.
The 16:9 book format, like the standard mobile proportions, reflects how we perceive the world today; the embossing of a marble jpg, distorted by an internet-sharing error, adds a feeling of pixelated rocky surface; a typeface that merges classical elegance with a contemporary edge evokes a grandiloquent yet unmistakably Roman aesthetic; and the inner page layouts draw inspiration from romantic old-fashioned designs with a brutalist twist.
