Brita Lindvall Leitmann, 50% doctoral seminar
Seminarium
Datum och tid
6 februari 2025 kl 13:00 - 15:00
Plats och färdväg
E1
Konstfack, LM Ericssons väg 14, Stockholm (Se karta)
Färdväg: Tunnelbana eller buss till Telefonplan

Seminar title: Elizabet at All Times
Discussant: Hedvig Hedqvist
Brita Lindvall Leitmann discusses her ongoing PhD thesis, Elizabet at All Times, in conversation with Hedvig Hedqvist. The conversation will be held in Swedish.
The starting point of Brita Lindvall Leitmann’s research project revolves around the typographer Elizabeth Friedlander, born 1903, Berlin – and her typeface “Elizabeth”, released in 1939. Friedlander plans to launch this typeface under the name of “Friedlander-Antiqua”, but she is forced to rebrand it using her first name. Her surname is not accepted by the authorities due to the political currents that dominated Germany at the time. It sounds too Jewish. Elizabeth Friedlander, an upcoming name in typographic circles, is forbidden to practice her profession for the same reason. She manages to obtain a visa to Italy, which becomes a temporary safe haven until Mussolini’s anti-Jewish laws come into effect, forcing her to uproot once again. She flees the country just before the outbreak of war. Based on Elizabeth Friedlander’s interrupted work and canceled premise, Lindvall Leitmann’s project has its beginning.
Elizabeth at All Times constitutes an ongoing study of typography as a visual language and graphic design craft by exploring how time and circumstance affect aesthetic hegemonies and practice. The body of work consists of a series of revival typefaces based on Elizabeth Friedlander’s work and unfinished sketches accompanied by short stories connecting Elizabeth’s history, Lindvall Leitmann’s ongoing practice, and contemporary events. By historicizing how technological, political, economic, and sociocultural currents intersect, intertwine, and create conditions for Elizabeth Friedlander’s present, Lindvall Leitmann seek to try out methods for aesthetic and mental shifts that lead to other ways of perceiving and reanimating the past – setting other conditions and futures for her practice.
Hedvig Hedqvist (b. 1940) is a journalist and author specializing in design and architecture. Trained as a designer at the Royal Danish Academy (fmr. Skolen for Bolingindretning) in Copenhagen, she has served as head of the textile studio at the Kooperative Förbundet and worked for Marimekko and Mahjong. As a journalist, she spent several decades at Svenska Dagbladet, significantly contributing to the discourse on design in Sweden. Hedqvist has authored several books on designers, including a biography of Estrid Ericson, published in 2023 by Norstedts.
Principal supervisor: Prof. Johanna Lewengard
Assistant supervisors: Dr. Nadine Chahine, Dr. Moa Matthis, and Malou Verlome
Important note: Attendance is limited to 15 participants. Please register by emailing Johanna Lewengard.
Arrangör
Doktorandprogrammet i konst, teknik och design (KTD)