What is Cordel?

Cordel literature, a Northeastern Brazilian tradition, features woodcut-illustrated booklets. These vibrant prints and verses depict folklore, daily life, and history, celebrating the region's rich cultural heritage and storytelling. Cordel booklets are traditionally displayed hanging from cords or strings, where the woodcut-covered booklets.

Cordel as Design

Josué Araujo wrote a poem about cordel as an art form, and called it a “pure science.”

My main concept was to reframe cordel as a design object instead of a craft.

The Structure of Cordel

There are several design traditions and rules within cordel, many of which I took as inspiration for the exhibition identity.

Mirrored Letters

Some of the logo’s letters are mirrored to hint at the production of cordel: since it’s a woodcut, cordel artists and authors have to write the text from back to front.

Logo As Framing Device

The original cordel illustration take center stage, with the logo acting as a framing device--again, highlighting the structure of cordel booklets.

Color Story

Although cordel is traditionally made with black ink, more and more artists have started to use color. The logo’s color palette makes use of the most common colors in cordel.