An impressively crafted, layered and colorful birthday calendar by Karel Martens. It's base is a single geometrical composition that has been punched out of colored card stock in multiple directions. The calendar does not identify specific years or the shifting days of the week, instead it functions as a permanent, non-expiring ledger designed to track recurring annual milestones like birthdays, anniversaries, and memories, year after year.
Originally conceived by Karel Martens in 1968, the design has not been produced in a large edition until now.
- Size: 11.8" × 16.5"
- 14 pages, softcover with thick cardstock pages
- Top spiral binding with hole punch for wall hanging
- Designed by Karel Martens
- Published by Roma Publications, 2026
Karel Martens is a Dutch graphic designer, artist, and educator known for his experimental approach to typography and print. Since the 1960s, he has created everything from books and postage stamps to abstract letterpress monoprints made with found materials. Martens blends precision with play, often embracing chance and imperfection in his work. He co-founded the influential postgraduate graphic design program Werkplaats Typografie in the Netherlands, and has inspired generations of designers through both his teaching and his deeply thoughtful, hands-on design practice.
