Flyer’dam Rotterdam Flyer Culture from the 80s Till Now Edited by Fleur Kolk, Gyz La Riviere. Text by Mike van Gaasbeek, Geert Mul
Collecting more than 2,000 fliers and posters for Rotterdam nightlife and cultural events, Flyer'dam reads like a catalogue raisonné for the design history of that city’s now-infamous clubbing-scene of the past 30 years--but without the pedagogy. Flyers and posters for parties, events and concerts from the 1980s through today are reproduced in giddy spreads that sometimes capture as many 20 vibrant items of ephemera per page. The rise of house, acid, gabber, illegal parties and R-and-B, as well as techno, drum ‘n' bass, hip-hop, breakbeatz, the alternative scene and art pop parties are all documented here, along with profiles of clubbers--mainly young and urban--and trends in graphic styles, typographies and influences.
This collection of club flyers reflects a penchant for design and pop culture in general--with visual references as disparate as Japanese manga, 1960s psychedelia, PlayStation, Dutch pornography and Bauhaus philosophy. However, with the development of new digital techniques, it is also interesting to track the directions designers are taking, with more appropriated imagery from the Internet, and, of course, more computer-generated artwork in general. Aside from providing an exhaustive history of recent popular graphic design in the Netherlands, Flyer'dam celebrates the culture of international youth in an exuberant, accessible format.
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