Official site of the work of Ilio Negri

Milan, 1926/1974

In only a few years of his short life Ilio has left a very personal and permanent mark within the branding of many Italian companies, from Autobianchi to Lagostina, Superga to Boffi Kitchens, from the bitter Giuliani medicine to the Recordati pharmaceutics; from the series of books for the Lerici publishing to Pirelli’s projects, Innocenti, Total and moreover in the brand identity of minor companies that have gifted their clients unforgettable calendars, printed books and many advertising pages full of poetry. A double journey of strict graphic research and ironic and clever communicative language is what characterized his life.
It isn’t easy, as sons, to celebrate a “father of graphic design”. Paolo Jannacci wrote of his: “Many people call him genius. In reality he is a father”. For this reason, I chose a Jannacci’s song to accompany the images of Ilio Negri’s graphic and help us bring to life the atmosphere of that naïve and resourceful, poor and optimistic Italy that now has disappeared.
Below: Video by Luca Negri with soundtrack “Per un Basin” by Enzo Jannacci

Some of the works produced between 1948 and 1974