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Aleardo Terzi ( Palermo 1870 - Castelletto Ticino 1943 )

Aleardo Terzi studies at Accademia di Belle Arti in Palermo. In 1892 he moves to Rome, where he is asked to collaborate to the journal ” La Tribuna illustrata”. From 1898 he is actively busy in designing postcards, and music book covers; he is illustrator and designer for Officine grafiche Ricordi. He moves to Bologna to work with the editor E. Chappuis, while he goes on collaborating with the most relevant magazines and newspapers of that moment (among which Corriere dei piccoli from the start).
Maestro of Italian Liberty style, he illustrates lots of books, among the titles of a famous series "La Scala d'oro" by the editor UTET. After a first period, in which an allegorical figure was prevalent in his works, Terzi gave us two masterpieces in the Poster history in Italy: the monkey brushing its teeth with  Dentol in 1914 and the puppy with a brush in its mouth, advertising  Max Meyer & C in 1921. Between 1913 and  1915 he is one of the  animators of  “Secessione romana”, whose exhibitions he takes part with some paintings, while preparing the staging and the catalogue covers. He then moves back to Milan, where he becomes the manager of the advertising office at  Wander. He is very active as a fashion designer, for furniture and ceramics and also as an advertiser. In 1925 he is the Director of “Istituto del libro di Urbino” and in  1928 he becomes the Director of the graphic studio of ”Secessione” from Vienna.

translation by Irene De Angelis Curtis