Something That is No Longer and Is Not Yet

The Advent of the Computer and the Digital From the Pages of “Linea Grafica” Magazine, 1985-2000

Abstract

This article looks at the reception of the computer and of the digital revolution in Italy through the pages of the specialised magazine Linea grafica from 1970 to 2000. The examination of the magazine highlights the appearance of thematic strands and issues, detecting exclusions and silences as well, with regard to the advent of the new technologies, and offers suggestions for further investigation. In particular, the analysis illuminates the emergence of a discourse within the magazine itself, that evolves from a consideration of the computer primarily as a tool to the acknowledgement of the radical qualitative change in the production and consumption of graphic design brought about by digital technologies, and of the digital environment as an immersive dimension and a metaphor for communication as such.