Jo Erich Kuhn Bookplate Collection
Kuhn was a German graphic designer, artist, art director and businessman. He collected bookplates and bookplate literature. A modern man of culture in Gothenburg!
About the collection
The majority of Kuhn's collection consists of bookplate literature. In total, it amounts to 72 archival boxes containing bookplate periodicals, books and catalogues. In the catalogues and books are bookplates, printed or glued in. The collection represents materials from large parts of Europe, divided by country. The main portions represent art from Italy, Germany and Denmark. Here, too, are a number of archival boxes with bookplates and literature from Argentina, Armenia, Great Britain and the United States.
The majority of the collection's contents is modern, 20th century graphics.
Acquisition history
Kuhn donated his own collection to the library.
Access the collection
The collection is held in the closed stacks at the Humanities library. It is available for reading room use only.
Catalogue
The collection has not been catalogued.
An inventory is available in Gupea
Humanities library
Renströmsgatan 4
405 30 GOTHENBURG
Phone: 031-786 17 45
Text:
Kristina Sevo
Biography
Jo (Josef) Erich Kuhn was born in Mainz/Rhein in Germany on December 23rd, 1925. He studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule - the school of arts and crafts in Mainz, 1940-1942, and was then drafted into military service at 17. He survived three years aboard a German minesweeper. Following the Second World War, in 1946, he worked as head of advertising for the American Red Cross. He continued to work for the Allies at the American Eucom Exchange Service until 1948.
In the following year, Kuhn began his studies at what is currently HDK-Valand in Gothenburg. Parallel to his studies, he worked as studio manager at the Klingeners reklam- & dekorationsbyrå in Gothenburg, and after graduating in 1951, he and his wife, engineer Torborg Kuhn née Bergbrandt, founded the Pilreklam advertising company. Their enterprise won fame for, among other things, the interior design at the Swedish Exhibition and congress Centre, and the company remains to this day.
Meanwhile, Kuhn also created art in the form of graphics and bookplates. Several times he hosted exhibitions with paintings, graphics and drawings by artists from various parts of the world.
Kuhn featured in many contexts in his new home town of Gothenburg. He was a churchwarden in the German Church where he opened a church museum inside the tower. He was chair of the Deutscher Klub and a member of the Gothenburg Art Association, as well as the Association of Foreign Politics, to mention just a few. His passion for social and political justice and his thorough knowledge of history are evident in the press, where he penned several contributions to the "Free words" column.
Kuhn and his wife Torborg were commissioned to create the interior of many shops, and to host exhibitions. He frequently involved himself in exhibitions with ties to German culture, such as the Gutenberg exhibition at the Gothenburg city library in 1969, and the Bertolt Brecht exhibition at the Nääs factories. The latter featured works by graphic artists inspired by Brecht.
After their retirement, the Kuhns moved to Lerum.
Jo Erich Kuhn died on February 10th, 2010.
Read more
Pilreklam company website
Pilreklam in Sveriges handelskalender, 1971
Slöjdföreningens skola via Det gamla Göteborg (currently HDK-Valand)
Vem är vem, 1965, Jo Erich Kuhn
Suggested research topics
- An overview of the collection's contents. What is represented here, and how does it mirror the time and context of the material?
- Biographical research
- Selection of images.
- Bookplates as an art form.
- Printing techniques.
- The structure and assembly of the collection.
- Artists represented in the collection.
Please contact us if you have any suggested research topics you would like to share!