Per vederci chiaro by Renzo Dionigi

Published January 29, 2026

Contributed by CAST

Per vederci chiaro – Gli occhiali e l'inventore inesistente (“Seeing clearly – Glasses and the non-existent inventor”) is an essay published by Nomos Edizioni. It investigates the origins of one of the most common objects in everyday life: glasses. The author, Renzo Dionigi, reconstructs the history of an invention that responded to a need for social and economic progress, revealing its multiple and sometimes controversial origins.

From the history of reading to the first lenses, from frames to the lexicography of the term “eyeglass”, the volume spans centuries of inventions, disputes and symbolic representations. With a preface by Luciano Perondi and Raimonda Riccini , the theme of legibility is intertwined with that of reading tools, while engravings and prints from 1400 to 1700 bring to light what was invisible or forgotten, between utility, art and memory.

The graphic design focuses on a typographic composition rich in detail and peculiarities, enhanced by the characteristics of the Sorella font – designed by Luis Castellón and published by CAST – which recalls the writing of the 18th-century calligrapher Angela Baroni. Scotus Sans, designed by Giulio Galli, Riccardo Olocco and Luciano Perondi, is used for footnotes and a few other minor details.

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