NKF. Piet Zwart's Avant-Garde Catalog for Standard Cables

Piet Zwart helped rewrite the rules of modern typography. His best-known work, an 80-page catalog for the electrical cable manufacturer Nederlandse Kabelfabriek Delft (NKF), is a remarkable case study in visual communication: combining razor-sharp photos, playful type compositions, expressive montages, and bold fields of color to transform the humble cable into a subject for experimental graphic design.

This first-ever facsimile of Zwart’s NKF catalog reproduces the complete book with exacting details and in its original format. An accompanying critical supplement includes fascinating essays by design scholars Philip B. Meggs and Paul Stirton, a rich selection of rarely seen projects from Zwart’s decade-long relationship with NKF, and a translation of Zwart’s original manifesto.

Letterform Archive, 2024, 2 softcover volumes (facsimile and supplement) housed in slipcover, 160 pp