Ada Wardi

Ada Wardi, graphic designer and curator, works in book designing and is art director of Keter&Modan Publishing House. Senior lecturer in Wizo Haifa Academy of Design and Education.

During the years 2009-2015 she initiated and conducted an independent research on the designer and typographer Moshe Spitzer, who brought about a major change in the culture of the Hebrew book and Hebrew typography during the middle of the last century. Her research into Spitzer`s published works and archive resulted in the "Spitzer Book" which she edited and designed.
The book focuses on Tarshish Publishing House, which Spitzer established in Jerusalem in 1940, in many ways resembling the Insel German edition. Most of Tarshish Books appear in the “Spitzer Book”, accompanied by short essays written by scholars and intellectuals who discuss the relationship between design and content and analyze the typographic work of Spitzer and the way it serves the content of each book.

The above research on Moshe Spitzer widened into a comprehensive research including two typographers – Henry Friedlander and Franciscka Baruch. Like Moshe Spitzer, they trained and worked in Germany during the 20s, and since the late 30s took major part in the developing Hebrew culture, each seeking in his or her special way after a "new Hebrew type" which will serve the Renaissance in the  Hebrew culture. The research was comprehensive, involving major typographers and culture researchers in Israel, Germany and Switzerland, in cooperation with Marbach Literary Archive.

This research resulted in the exhibition curated by Ada Wardi: "New Types: Three pioneers of Hebrew Graphic Design" in Israel Museum Jerusalem (October 2015 – June 2016). The exhibition showed for the first time materials of their typographic work procedures which were found in their archives in Jerusalem, Germany and England. The exhibition was accompanied by a catalogue book which held articles based on the research which focused on the relationship between culture and typography, and how technology and changing cultural concepts influence the form of the letter.
Among the writers were Prof. Adi Stern, Liron Lavi –Turkenich, Philipp Messner and more.
The exhibition was also displayed in Germany at the Museum für Druckkunst Leipzig (2016) and combined Hebrew metal types that were kept in the Museum.

She writes articles for numerous publications and helds lectures at international conferences.