Matilde Argentero

Alfa-Beta is the first book by the type designer Aldo Novarese, from 1964. The volume is one of the few works written in Italian addressing theory and practice of type design. Its original and dynamic cut makes it a source of inspiration still nowadays.

During 2020, Novarese’s centenary year, the book was reissued with a crowdfunding project set up by a team of designers and printers revolving around Archivio Tipografico, one of Italy’s main cultural centers on letterpress and typography. The reissue was carried on in a completely independent way, resulting in a long and difficult but ultimately successful path!

Matilde Argentero is one of the four Aldo Novarese’s granddaughters. She went on to work in design and marketing, but a drive to reconcile digital design and material reality led her to Archivio Tipografico, where these two worlds collide, and where Matilde reconnected with her roots. She started collaborating with Archivio Tipografico and involved the space and its team when the idea of reissuing Alfa-Beta arose.