temporary exhibition

Even among the more than 1000 year history of printing, Gutenberg’s invention of letterpress printing was a major event in the field.
This technology was established toward the end of the Middle Ages in the middle of the 15th century, and instantly swept over Europe, where text had been primarily reproduced by handwriting. In its birthplace of Germany, it was called die schwarze Kunst (which translates to “the black art”), and a unique publication printing culture was formed.
This exhibition provides a look at how the art of letterpress printing–considered a thing of the past in the industry today–and typefaces greatly influenced the formation of the country’s culture through exploring Gutenberg’s achievements as well as through Germany itself, where the technology was created and proudly passed down to the present day.