This book traces the biographical and professional events in the life of Lica Covo Steiner, a graphic artist who contributed to the development of editorial design in Italy. Through documents, interviews, photographs, and personal correspondence, her personal and professional relationship with her husband, Albe Steiner, is reconstructed, as well as her friendships with such personalities as Max Huber, Giancarlo De Carlo, Gillo Dorfles, and Italo Calvino. Written and compiled by her daughter, Anna Steiner, it is a testament to the exemplary idealism and civil commitment of a woman who was among the great protagonists of post-war Milanese culture.

Lica Cova Steiner was born in Milan in 1914 to a cosmopolitan and firmly anti-fascist family. In 1938, she married graphic designer Albe Steiner—their family and friends affectionately called the couple Licalbe. Together the pair opened a photo/graphic studio the following year, and became involved with Milan's anti-fascist avant-garde. Later in life, Steiner became an editor for Pagina della Donna [the Women's Page], producing a pioneering weekly column related to women's issues and in 1964, she and Albe began working on collecting and recovering records on concentration camps and their prisoners for what ultimately became the Museo Monumento al Deportato [The Carpi Museum of Deportation]. Throughout her life, Steiner was committed to the promotion and recognition of graphic design, as both a practitioner and a design educator.

Published by Corraini Edizioni

In Italian and English

Softcover, 192 pages, full color and b&w, 8.4 × 5.8 inches 

ISBN: 978-88-7570-515-2