Irma Boom, acclaimed graphic designer and bookmaker, is in conversation with Nina Stritzler-Levine, Gallery Director, Bard Graduate Center, and curator of Artek and the Aaltos. They will discuss the creation of the current book and Boom’s larger multifaceted practice and diverse clientele.

Irma Boom specializes in book making. Boom has been described as the ‘The Queen of Books’, having created over 300 books and is well reputed for her artistic autonomy within her field. Her bold experimental approach to her projects often challenges the convention of traditional books in both physical design and printed content. Boom has been noted as the youngest recipient of the Gutenberg Prize, an award recognizing outstanding services to the advancement of the book arts. A selection of Boom’s books are exhibited in the permanent collection of MoMA, and a personalized Irma Boom Archive has been set up at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, showcasing Boom’s work. Her design titles include, SHV Think Book 1996-1896, Weaving as Metaphor, Sheila Hicks, and Irma Boom: The Architecture of the Book.

Nina Stritzler-Levine is Gallery Director at Bard Graduate Center. Exhibitions include Sheila Hicks: Weaving as Metaphor (curator); Finnish Modern Design: Utopian Ideals and Everyday Realities, 1930–1997 (co-curator); Josef Frank Architect and Designer: An Alternative Vision of the Modern Home (curator); The Brilliance of Swedish Glass, 1918–1939 (co-curator). Publications include “Architecture in the Museum,” Archipelago Essays on Architecture; Curating History; “Exhibition Ideas: Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Architectural Exhibition Practice at the MoMA, 1932–1957”; Sheila Hicks (editor and contributor); Thou Shall/Not Be Branded, Bruno Mathsson in America; and Josef Frank, Architect and Designer: An Alternative Vision of the Modern Home.