Studio Albert Romagosa’s publication designs are uncomplicated yet intelligible

Barcelona-based studio, Studio Albert Romagosa was founded in 2014 by the designer of the same name. Crisp and clearly executed, the studio has developed a reputation for design precision to accompany striking visuals. With a variety of clients, the studio works on book design, branding and web design, consistently delivering polished, concept-based designs that are sympathetic to the client’s function.

Melancolía, a biannual the studio design, is a printed publication which aims to question the limits of beauty and art. The personal project is a collaboration with long-term friend and client Adolfo Abejón, documenting photography, architecture and painting, or anything else that “makes us feel like we are in front of something special.” The image-based magazine is filled with pages of full-bleed colour and because of this, “we decided to go with a strong yet simple design for the very few pages of text; using colour as a way to give structure and dynamism," creative director Albert tells us.

“Melancolía works as a catalyst for thoughts and interpretations” and each issue tells stories through an exploration of themed visual essays. Previous themes include the contemplation of flowers, the objectification of painted objects and survival design. Although these issues are comprehensive, Albert’s designs construct a “quiet magazine” so the conceptual themes do not seem overwhelming.

Another book that Albert and his team designed is Limits, a book about architecture. The book is the first in its series titled Habitatge i Ciutat or “Housing and City” exploring the natural or human limits within cities. The book’s design is pragmatic, pages on the left-hand side are in English whereas on the right they are Catalan or Spanish, depending on the original text. Meticulously typeset articles are the focus of the book and the justified text is satisfyingly exact and suitably reflects the subject of architecture.

On the design of Limits, Albert says: “We wanted to make a comfortable and readable book that could later be the seed for a whole collection of book covers.” Elegant and uncomplicated, these two publications exemplify Studio Albert Romagosa’s creative practice. With a design ethos founded on intelligibility and coherence, this studio knows how to exhibit eye-catching visuals through print, using an understanding of page layouts and type to inform its graphic design output.