Publication «De vítores y letras»
The product of collaboration between Tau Design and Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca, “i and Letters”, a book that traces the history of Salamanca’s distinctive vítores, traditional symbols found on the university walls of the city, since their inception, including their academic and typographic significance.
The aim is to appreciate an iconic element integrated into the urban landscape of Salamanca that has much graphic and, above all, historical interest. The book abounds in its interest as vernacular typography, describing also the traditional and modern techniques for their creation. It also has an exhaustive photographic study, followed by a reinterpretation of the vítores by recognized artists.
The editorial design applies differentiated solutions for each section, taking advantage of the specific values of the images that illustrate the various content. The characteristic drawing of the blocks and niches that constitute the support of the vítores and letters of Salamanca reaches the category of conductive thread in the task of composing and ordering a good number of images from the book. The photographic reporting illustrating the historical vítores has a treatment that carries one through the black and white facades, while highlighting the old graphics in sanguine colours. In contrast to this solution, the work of contemporary designers and artists is framed by colour pages that also incorporate the texts of the participants.
The publication is part of the VIII Centenary of the University of Salamanca and is prefaced by Emilio Gil and Eduardo Azofra. It has texts from Luis Enrique Rodríguez-San Pedro, Ángel Weruaga, José Antonio Saavedra García, Valentín Gómez García, José Mª Cerezo and Andreu Balius; the photography of José Antonio López Hueto, José Ángel Barbero Sánchez, Sergio Manzano and Eduardo Azofra; as well as contemporary interpretations of the Salamanca vítor by Andreu Bernal, Pepe Gimeno, Lorenzo Gómez, Gráfica Futura, Fernando Gutiérrez, Enric Jardí, Luis Mayo Vega, Sonia Sánchez, Rafa Sañudo and Miquel Barceló.
As a complementary activity, the Vice Chancellor for the Commemoration of the VIII Centenary of the University of Salamanca, Mariano Esteban de Vega, together with Emilio Gil presented on October 28 a homonymous exhibition which also consists of a journey through the classic history of Salamanca typography, based on vítores, and offers different reinterpretations of this perennial symbol in the collective imagination of Salamanca.
Collaborator: Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca
Project: Publicación
Year: 2017
