n°54 — The Director, the Graphic Designer, and the Printer: Pontus Hultén and the Making of the Catalog, 1960-1973
By Malou Messien

Centered on the emblematic figure of Pontus Hultén, this issue of Revue Faire explores the director's publishing work during his time at the head of the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, from 1960 to 1973.

Director and founder of a number of institutions, including the Moderna Museet and the Centre Pompidou, Pontus Hultén published books throughout his career. Beginning in the 1960s when he was appointed director of Sweden's first museum of modern art, he fully embraced the challenge of the exhibition catalog, even becoming involved in its design.

Hultén shaped the visual worlds of the museums he headed by bringing together artists, curators, graphic designers, publishers, authors and printers and setting them to work on bold projects that ran counter to established conventions.

These collaborations exploded traditional hierarchies: different roles intermingled, were reinvented, or simply disappeared. Although he rarely designed or printed material himself, Hultén's influence could be felt at each stage of the creative process. Among the people he regularly worked with were the Swedish graphic designers Hubert Johansson, John Melin & Anders Österlin (M&Ö) and Gösta Svensson, and, later on, international figures such as Jean Widmer and Roman Cieślewicz.

Faire is a bi-monthly publication dedicated to graphic design. Produced by Empire, the publishing arm of French design studio Syndicat (designers Sacha Léopold and François Havegeer), Faire is aimed at students as well as researchers and professional designers. Each issue addresses a specific object or theme and is written by a renowned author.

Published by Editions Empire, 2025
Bilingual, in French and English

Softcover, 64 pages, CMYK + 1 PMS, 8.25 × 11.75 inches

ISBN: 979-1-09-599180-9