Karl-Heinz Drescher (born on October 7, 1936 in Quirl; died on May 19, 2011 in Berlin) was a graphic artist working at Bertolt Brecht’s world famous theater Berliner Ensemble as a graphic designer for almost 40 years. In addition to his work at this house, Drescher also worked for other organizers, museums, galleries, and theaters, amongst others the Akademie der Künste der DDR, the Maxim-Gorki-Theater, and the Deutsche Staatsoper in Berlin. His catalog of works today comprises over 400 posters, about one third printed with letterpress.

In a one-year research, the designer Markus Lange contacted Drescher’s family and conducted various interviews with companions and friends to find out more about this talented designer, who studied from 1955 to 1960 in the former GDR at the same school as he did (Burg Giebichenstein, formerly Hochschule für industrielle Formgestaltung).

For the first time, this book summarizes most of Drescher’s (typographic) posters in one comprehensive volume and contains texts and interviews by various authors such as Dr. Friedrich Diekmann, Dr. Sylke Wunderlich, Helmut Brade, Niklaus Troxler, Gerd Fleischmann, Jamie Murphy, Erik Spiekermann, Ferdinand Ulrich, Götz Gramlich, Peter Kammerer, Vera Tenschert, Cesarina and Alessandro Drescher. “Karl-Heinz Drescher—Berlin Typo Posters, Texts, and Interviews” serves as a review of the life of an extraordinary theater graphic designer but also as an inspiration for the here and now.

About Elska 19 (London, England):

Our nineteenth Elska Magazine issue is our second to be made in the UK, but our first to be made in England. Inside, readers are introduced to fifteen men from the local gay/queer community. Each get their own chapter containing a personal story they wrote from their life in the city, and several intimate and unairbrushed images shot of them inside their homes and out in their neighbourhoods. None are hired models or celebrities, none of the scenes are staged, and none of the stories are commissioned, resulting in an honest glimpse at gay lives in the British capital.

Living in London is vastly different to what tourists see and experience, which is why the images don't show what you might expect - there's no Buckingham Palace or even a Gherkin in the background. The stories are rather more real as well, and in the case of our London issue, often a bit dark. 

Some of the fifteen men you'll meet in Elska London include:

• Tommy M, who talked about the fabulous gay life he dreamed of as a teenager, eventually moving to London from his native Lithuania to find year after year of his expectations being shattered;

• Harry F, who shared a recent experience dealing with a barrage of homophobia from a punter at his local pub, something he didn’t expect to happen in this city and in 2018;

• Omar B, who wrote about learning to accept loneliness as a normal part of London life, and learning how to flourish anyway;

• Jamie T, who opened up about a sexually unwelcome experience at a work function and how the #MeToo movement has barely reached the LGBTQ community;

• Brad C; who discussed the trials of dating in the capital in a colourfully detailed and most explicit way that transports you into the city's pubs, parks, and bedrooms.

Features images of / stories from: Omar B, Dylan T, Darren B, Jose C, Jamie T, Alex L, Wellie Y, Sean B, Kamil M, Harry F, Tommy M, Brad C, Victor U-K, Konstantin Z, and Thomas G.

Details and Specs:

Elska London is 180 pages. The print version is A5 (24cm x 14.8cm / 5.8 x 8.3 in), full colour, perfect-bound, and on 130gsm (90lb) matte paper. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

Details and Specs:

Elska Berlin is 180 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

Elska Berlin is our second issue, made in one of the world's gay meccas. It quickly too became one of our most popular issues ever, and after selling out some time ago (and receiving loads of requests to make more), we finally decided to reissue it. However, we didn't do a simple reprint. We decided to redo the issue completely, going into our Berlin archives and selecting each image and story from scratch. The result is over 50% previously unpublished images, making the new Elska Berlin attractive for old and new customers alike. We also chose to redo the print version in our new bigger and lovelier format, making it all the more attractive.

The issue is divided into twelve chapters, each dedicated to one particular man who the Elska team met on their trip to Berlin. Each chapter includes a dozen or so images, taken of the subject both in the city streets and at home, dressed in their own style or often nude. Each chapter also includes a personal story contributed by each guy, sort of like an intimate conversation or diary entry. The goal of the magazine is to act as a sort of virtual transport to the city, inviting readers to meet a selection of local guys, get to know them, and fall in love with them and the city.

Features images of / stories from: Bastian C, Marc Y, Diego S, Luca T, Roman T, Emil T, Colin C, Falko D, David P, Heiko M, Matija M, and Raphael K.

We also recommend ordering Elska Ekstra Berlin, available separately, for loads of outtakes, a behind the scenes diary of our Berlin trip, and to meet the following additional men: Shir N, Luca T, Alessandro G, Adam G, Ticha T, and Max E.

The photography of ‘Elska Berlin’ and ‘Elska Ekstra Berlin’ includes work by Liam Campbell, Fedya Ili, Jonathan Lemieux, and Andriy Melnyk. The stories are written by the subjects themselves.

Details and Specs:

Elska Berlin is 180 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

In Berlin Quarterly’s signature longform reportage, Allyn Gaestel writes from Kinshasa, profiling an independent collective of sex workers in the Congolese capital. Gaestel traces the history of sex work in the region from colonial times to the present, and grounds the reportage in close portraits of the women involved.
This fiction-rich issue includes four short stories: Clemens Meyer’s whirlwind account of sex work in East Germany, Esther Kinsky’s meditation on the Rhine river, Eloghosa Osunde’s encounter with ghouls, and Darryl Pinckney’s fraught romances in Berlin.
Two Nigerian poets are featured: Niran Okewole and Precious Arinze. Their work is expansive, ranging both in form and content, from contemporary scenes of women kissing in churches to naming major perpetrators of the slave trade. In addition, renowned German poet Jan Wagner appears in both German and English, as well as in conversation with poetry editor Ezequiel Zaidenwerg.
Jann Höfer’s photo portfolio illustrates a German village in Chile, founded after WWII, in its awkward rebranding as a tourist destination after the incarceration of its leader. The uncanny portraits capture both the aging population and the cinematic landscapes that surround the former cult.