As part of a 3-day workshop by Julia Kahl, 18 students from the Design Department of the Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences were on location at the new rooms of Slanted Publishers in Karlsruhe’s Rheinhafen and dealt intensively with the area and people behind. The result is a small, fine publication that offers a glimpse behind the scenes: Über Exoten—Slanted on the Docks.
The editorial by Manuel Gensheimer describes the publication vividly as follows: “At the foot of the energy mountain, hidden amongst scrap metal collectors, glaziers, painters, cargo ships, a canoe club, a steel factory, and a dog boarding kennel. A small, red container. Where men meet to make love on the street corner, art students organize pop-up parties, and pensioners book harbor tours with cod. The Rhine port of Karlsruhe. At any rate, it is one of the largest inland ports in Germany. When viewed from above, the harbor basins resemble a pitchfork. Or is it the Devil’s Trident? A cactus? Whatever. The Nördliche Uferstraße runs along the end of the upper harbor basin. The new home of Slanted Publishers.
The container proudly fills half the room and greets you as you enter in an alarm red robe. It is open on two sides, a small sofa invites you to procrastinate, the Slanted neon sign dangles from the top and illuminates the room with sweet charm.
Warm colors, flashy book spines, adjustable tables with freshly calibrated screens, a cowhide rug, a waist-high wooden lipstick, absurd amounts of peppermint tea, huge letters, towering books, tiny books, magazines, more magazines, still more magazines, out-of-print special editions, prototypes hot off the press, a sunny yellow beanbag, and loads of plants. One of them tries—unsuccessfully—to conceal the fridge-sized server box with its enormous leaves. It defends itself bravely with non-stop flashing lights. Enough Internet.
So what is it that they do here, anyway? Graphic design? Books? Magazines? Writing? Art? “We love books,” says Julia Kahl, one of the founders of Slanted Publishers. One thing is certain: this is no ordinary publishing house, no classic graphic design studio, it’s somewhere in between and something entirely its own. Someone once said “Porn for Typelovers.” Fitting.
This is where magic happens, shrill color tones and chunky letters, halftone photos, and italic type, on 120-gramme glossy paper, with embossing and special colors. One issue about New York, the next Tokyo, or Stockholm. Whether Bavaria or Rwanda, Slanted Magazine is a must-have among designers. In addition to the inhouse magazine, books are published about art, typography, posters, cultural identities, principles of design, film festivals, and skate parks. A blog became a magazine, a magazine became a publishing house. Julia and her team strikingly demonstrate that print is indeed alive and thriving.
In this publication, the authors omit nothing and take a close look. You get the full package. The premium box, so to speak. Including audio experiences and book spine skylines. The toxic green slough in the harbor basin is featured as well as the co-workers. You’ll learn all about the team’s favorite fonts and eating habits, the number of archived emails, and newsletter subscribers. A typeface is made from found letters, an illustration from refrigerator leftovers, a Where’s Wally picture from office inventory. It’s about contrasts and similarities, about inside and outside, about aesthetics and functionality. Come with us on a discovery tour, let us show you the world of Slanted.”
Über Exoten—Slanted on the Docks
3-day-workshop with students from the Department Design of University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt
Publisher: Slanted Publishers
Supervision: Julia Kahl
Participating students: Alicia Viktoria Kaiser, Anna Celina Fischer, Carla Trapp, Celina Otto, Denisa Theresa Holzapfel, Elvis Loos, Hannah Apollonia Stroiczek, Joana Scharnagl, Lemmi Karnop, Lisa Breu, Luca Haertel, Manuel Gensheimer, Max Bartunek, Max Mäder, Maximilian Walter, Milos Hesse, Robert Hohn, Teresa Van
Initiated by Prof. Dr. Sandra Hoffmann-Robbiani & Prof. Frank Philippin
Editorial: Manuel Gensheimer
Design: Anna Celina Fischer, Celina Otto, Denisa Theresa Holzapfel, Joana Scharnagl, Luca Haertel, Manuel Gensheimer, Max Mäder
Final Artwork: Julia Kahl, Clara Weinreich
Translation: Prof. Dr. Sandra Hoffmann-Robbiani
Edition: 250 copies
Small quantity for sale