Edicions 62

Description

Edicions 62 was envisioned as the first generalist, universal and modern post-war Catalan publishing house. Founded in 1961 by Ramon Bastardes and Max Cahner, in 1962 it released its first book: Nosaltres els valencians by Joan Fuster. One year later it became a limited liability company to solidify as a publishing imprint that sought to update the concept of publishing company. It created numerous collections on a variety of topics overseen by prominent historians, writers and intellectuals, and it published works by great authors translated into Catalan, along with reference books and illustrated books. The distributor Ifac disseminated its works.

Later on, in 1964, Josep M. Castellet joined the company to support its management and went on to become its literary director for 40 years. At that time, the imprint Edicions Península was created, specialising in publishing works in Spanish, which also gradually grew. Despite the initial impetus, the company had to overcome difficulties, such as the attempt to publish the Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana, which it never got off the ground, forcing the departure of Max Cahner and the president, Agustí Duran i Sanpere, as well as the dissolution of the distributing company.

Once it overcame these hardships, the publishing house started to grow and eventually absorbed other groups like Muchnik Editores, Editorial Selecta and Editorial Luciérnaga. Oriol Bohigas took on the challenge of putting the publishing house back on course and expanding it. During this era, it created emblematic collections and continued its previous collections, shaping a very broad range of publications.

In 1996, because it had absorbed several publishing groups, Grup 62 was founded, a series of publishing imprints which work together, share the same catalogue and offer a wide variety of contents for all possible audiences in different formats, genres and languages. Extremely prestigious publishing houses are members of Grup 62, including:

• Editorial Empúries
• Editorial Proa
• Editorial Planeta
• Ediciones Destino
• Columna Edicions

In 1997, Xavier Folch became the literary director and Josep M. Castellet replaced Bohigas as the president. In the early 21^st century, the company was in crisis again and the Caixa d’Estalvis i Pensions de Barcelona bank purchased shares. Later, in 2006, the Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana and Planeta publishing group followed suit, and in 2013 it purchased the shares owned by the bank, meaning that it held more than 50% of the shares in Grup 62. Currently, with Josep Ramoneda at the helm, Grup 62 is an imprint that represents much of the publishing market in Catalonia with publications in both Catalan and Spanish and more than 4,000 titles. The pace of publication is 100 new titles per year.

Edicions 62

Authors

As the publishing output is large and the collections diverse, many of the authors it published reflected this expansion, along with the imprint’s desire to publish a wide variety of genres with high-quality content. Catalan and renowned world authors are a fundamental part of the books published by Edicions 62.

• Barbal, Maria, 1949-

• Baudelaire, Charles, 1821-1867

• Benet i Jornet, Josep M., 1940-2020

• Benet, Josep, 1920-2008

• Calders, Pere, 1912-1994

• Calvino, Italo, 1923-1985

• Candel, Francisco, 1925-2007

• Capmany, Maria Aurèlia, 1918-1991

• Castellet, Josep Maria, 1926-2014

• Coll, Pep, 1949-

• Espriu, Salvador, 1913-1985

• Fuster, Jaume, 1945-1998

• Fuster, Joan, 1922-1992

• Guimerà, Àngel, 1845-1924

• Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936

• Le Carré, John, 1931-

• Martí i Pol, Miquel, 1929-2003

• Moix, Terenci, 1942-2003

• Molas, Joaquim, 1930-2015

• Moncada, Jesús, 1941-2005

• Nabokov, Vladimir Vladimirovich, 1899-1977

• Oller, Narcís, 1846-1930

• Pedrolo, Manuel de, 1918-1990

• Pla, Josep, 1897-1981

• Rodoreda, Mercè, 1908-1983

• Ruyra, Joaquim, 1858-1939

• Salvat-Papasseit, Joan, 1894-1924

• Salvat, Ricard, 1934-2009

• Simenon, Georges, 1903-1989

• Simó, Isabel-Clara, 1943-2020

• Teixidor, Emili, 1933-2012

• Triadú, Joan, 1921-2010

• Trías, Eugenio, 1942-2013

• Yates, Alan, 1944-

Edicions 62

Illustrators and photographers

Prominent Catalan illustrators and photographers published their works in Edicions 62 with either featured illustrations or photographs, or as graphic artists, designers or illustrators of books. 

Some graphic artists like Jordi Fornas stand out for his long career and participation in the design of the imprint’s publications.

Designs of covers and models designed by Jordi Fornas between 1960 and 1975.

Other examples of illustrated works (comics, plates, photographs, technical aspects, etc.):

• Schulz, Charles M. És diumenge, Charlie Brown. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1968 (1a ed.)

Front and back cover  

Frontispiece and titlepage

Last pages

• Campi i Valls, Isabel. Iniciació a la història del disseny industrial. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2003

Page 22          

Pages 40-41

• Créixer feliç amb les tres bessones bebès : jugar i aprendre II. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2004 (vol. 2)

Cover and pages 49-56

• Bernad, Antoni. Catalans: retrats. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1984.

Cover

Salvador Espriu

Francesc Català-Roca

Salvador Dalí

Victòria dels Àngels

• Català Roca, Francesc. Miró: noranta anys. Barcelona: Edicions 62,  1984.

Dust jacket

Cover 

Title page

Inside plates

•  Mars i cels. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2006.

Dust jacket and inside pages

• Capdevila, Roser, 1939-

• Català-Roca, Francesc, 1922-1998

• Fornas, Jordi, 1927-2011

• Schulz, Charles M. (Charles Monroe), 1922-2000

Edicions 62

Collections

Edicions 62 stands out for the wide variety of collections it created. Each of them was launched with the goal covering a specific topic. Of the 130 collections created, 20 are still active. Furthermore, it is also known for its periodicals and its participation in publishing with other imprints, such as the La Butxaca imprint.

Some of the imprints of the most popular collections:

El Balancí

El Cangur

La Cua de Palla

• Biblioteca clàssica catalana (2008-)

• Biblioteca Grècia i Roma de la Bernat Metge (2009-)

• Biografies i memòries (1978-1982, 1987-)

• Butxaca (2001-)

• El balancí (1965-)

• El cangur (1974-2001)

• Èxits 62 (1996-)

• L'escorpí/Teatre. El galliner (1970-)

• La cua de palla (1963-1970)

• Lectura plus (2009-)

• Les millors obres de la literatura catalana (1978-1983, 1994-1996)

• Les millors obres de la literatura universal (1981-1986)

• Llibres a l'abast (1962-)

• No ficció (2001-)

• Obres completes de Salvador Espriu: edició crítica (1992-)

• Poesia (1996-)

• Textos filosòfics (1981-)

Edicions 62

Magazines

Edicions 62 began to publish magazines in the late 1990s. In March 1997, the first issue of Descobrir Catalunya came out, in the spring of 1999 Altaïr was launched, and November-December 2000 saw the inaugural issue of Descobrir Cuina. In 2005, Descobrir Cuina and Descobrir Catalunya became part of the Cultura03 group in the company Sàpiens Publicacions, and Altaïr became the magazine of the Altaïr Editorial publishing house.

• Altaïr (1999-)

• Descobrir Catalunya (1997-2002)

• Descobrir cuina (2001-2002)

• Estudis escènics (1957-)

Edicions 62

Outstanding works

Edicions 62 publishes everything from literary works to reference books, along with research essays or popular informational texts. Its literary works reached historical records in terms of the number of publications.

Mecanoscrit del segon origen by Manuel de Pedrolo stands out for having been the book published by Edicions 62 with the most reissues (29 editions by 1987).

• Pedrolo, Manuel de. Mecanoscrit del segon origen. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1984 (El Cangur ; 23)

Other books that followed it in the rankings in 1987:

• Rodoreda, Mercè. Aloma. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1969 (El Balancí ; 59)

• Fuster, Jaume. De mica en mica s’omple la pica. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1972. (El Balancí ; 76)

• Teixidor, Jordi. El retaule del flautista. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1981. (L’Escorpí / Teatre. El Galliner ; 3)

• Espriu, Salvador. Laia: unes esvanides ombres del nostre mar. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1968. ( El Balancí ; 46)

In 2011, el Mecanoscrit del segon origen still ranked as the book with the most reissues; the titles that followed it were:

• Rodoreda, Mercè. Aloma. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1969. (El Balancí ; 59)

•  Pedrolo, Manuel de. Joc brut. 1a. ed. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1965. (La Cua de Palla ; 32)

           Pedrolo, Manuel de. Joc brut. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2011. (Lectura +)

•  Pedrolo, Manuel de. Trajecte final. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1979. (El Cangur ; 39)

           Pedrolo, Manuel de. Trajecte final. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2009. (Educació 62 ; 42)

• Calders, Pere. Cròniques de la veritat oculta. Barcelona: Edicions 62, 2009. (Educació 62; 46)

Edicions 62

Awards

• Premi de Narrativa Joanot Martorell de Gandia (1979-)

• Premi de Poesia Ausiàs March de Gandia (1959-)

• Premi de Poesia Sant Cugat a la Memòria de Gabriel Ferrater (2002-)

• Premi Documenta (1980-1986)

• Premi Godó de Reporterisme i Assaig Periodístic (2010-)

• Premi Prudenci Bertrana (1968-1986)

• Premi Rosa Sensat (1981-1985)

• Premi Salvador Espriu (1985-1986)

• Premi Sant Jordi de Novel·la (1957-)

• Premi Xarxa (1978-1986)