Initially created by Josep M. Esteve as a bookshop and distributor, Editorial Vergara started operating as a publishing house in around 1949-1950. Since the beginning it has published great works to sell in instalments with the goal of issuing large-format works, literature and history. The prominence earned in its early years prompted the creation of a branch in Madrid along with several subsidiaries in Latin America.
In the late 1950s, with Nicolau Surís at the helm and editor and poet Josep Maria Boix i Selva as the literary editor, it participated in creating the graphic workshops Printer and Círculo de Lectores. It also co-issued two profusely illustrated art books with the Paris-based Nathan publishing house. Some of its earliest collections, including Velero y Abedul, Verdad y Vida and Mapamundi, lasted only briefly, but the titles published within them were added to other collections created subsequently.
+ informationJosep Maria Boix i Selva collection at the Biblioteca de Catalunya
Catalogue of publishers and booksellers from the Bergnes de las Casas collection (Biblioteca de Catalunya)
Catalogue of publishers of Catalonia from 1940 to 1975 (Biblioteca de Catalunya)
More information and documentation on the works produced
Llanas, Manuel. L'Edició a Catalunya. Segle XX (1939-1975). Barcelona: Gremi d'Editors de Catalunya, 2005.
Vila-Sanjuán. Pasando página : autores y editores en la España democrática. Barcelona: Destino, 2003.
Vilardell, Laura. "Una aproximació a la col·lecció Isard” a La traducció i el món editorial de postguerra. Barcelona: Punctum & Trilcat, 2011, p. 253-272.
Initially created by Josep M. Esteve as a bookshop and distributor, Editorial Vergara started operating as a publishing house in around 1949-1950. Since the beginning it has published great works to sell in instalments with the goal of issuing large-format works, literature and history. The prominence earned in its early years prompted the creation of a branch in Madrid along with several subsidiaries in Latin America.
In the late 1950s, with Nicolau Surís at the helm and editor and poet Josep Maria Boix i Selva as the literary editor, it participated in creating the graphic workshops Printer and Círculo de Lectores. It also co-issued two profusely illustrated art books with the Paris-based Nathan publishing house. Some of its earliest collections, including Velero y Abedul, Verdad y Vida and Mapamundi, lasted only briefly, but the titles published within them were added to other collections created subsequently.
By the early 1970s, the publishing house had developed a comprehensive, solid range of topics and collections, with large-format encyclopaedic works, translations of informational monographs on a variety of topics, art and history books and an extensive literary section of works by universally renowned authors classified by literatures. Worth noting is the Isard collection (1962-1971), a personal, innovative project by Josep M. Boix whose main goal was to publish a series of world literature titles from all eras and styles in Catalan, along with original works in Catalan. Vergara also launched a record label of the same name directed by Oriol Martorell, which published the monologues of Joan Capri and ended up being renamed Ariola after being acquired by Bertelsmann.
In 1975, Vergara merged with Argos, a publishing house founded by Ignasi Agustí, to become Argos Vergara, under the literary direction of Mario Lacruz, which led to a major transformation in the publishing house.
Throughout its history, Vergara published authors on a variety of topics, especially titles from universal literature since its founding, along with illustrated books, large-format encyclopaedias and popular informational works.
Some of the original collections lasted only briefly, but the titles in those collections were revived under others created later. The publishing house did not present a consolidated range of topics and collections through encyclopaedic works, translations of popular works and illustrated books on art and history until Josep Maria Boix i Selva became the literary director.
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Publishing house’s catalogues from different time periods.
Different catalogues with price lists.
Editorial Vergara’s 1962 catalogue as a record label.