Museum of Typography, host to the AEPM 2017 annual conference
Unique in Greece, the Museum of Typography, which is hosting this year’s annual AEPM conference, is dedicated to the art that changed the course of history: typography. The Greek word “τυπογραφία” means both typography and printing, both of which are amply covered by the Museum which is located in the Industrial Park of Souda near the ancient town and former capital of Crete, Chania.
The choice of the Museum of typography to host this year’s conference on the theme of ‘Collectors, collections and the cultural rôle of printing museums’ fitted perfectly with the Museum’s own history, for it was set up by Yannis and Eleni Garedakis, owners and founders of the local daily newspaper Haniotika Nea. Started as a small private collection housed within the newspaper’s printing facilities, it first opened its doors to the public in 2005. A few years later, in 2012, a new wing was added and in 2015 another hall was inaugurated to display a collection of rare editions (16th – 19th century) that connect the history of printing to the local history of Crete. Today it consists of three large exhibition spaces, an amphitheatre, a library and a café, and covers an area of approximately 1,200 square meters.
In 2016 the Museum of Typography had the honour to be nominated for the prestigious European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA 2016) given by the European Museum Forum (EMF), under the auspices of the Council of Europe.
The Museum of Typography is a modern and unique museum dedicated to the history of printing and typesetting. The interactive tour illustrates the development of typography from middle ages up to the present day, giving visitors the opportunity to print on 19th century printing presses.
The Museum also organises and hosts a rich programme of cultural events such as conferences, book presentations, plays and concerts, and an annual international poster contest on the theme of typography.
Your can see a virtual 360° tour of the Museum of Typography here (give it a moment to load, then follow the little arrows.)
The Typography Museum
The Museum of Typography has been a member of the Association of European Printing Museums (AEPM) since 2012.
Chania, a beautiful venue for what promises to be a memorable conference
The city of Chania is built on the ruins of ancient Kydonia, which according to mythology was founded by king Kydon, son of Minos. Up until the late 7th century A.D. Kydonia was one of the most important cities of Minoan Crete and its harbour was at the crossroads of three Continents.
Through the ages the city was conquered by Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, Turks, Egyptians, and Arabs, until the end of the 19th century, when Crete became autonomous. Chania – as well as the rest of Crete – was liberated and united with independent Greece in 1913.
Chania’s wonderful mixture of Eastern and Western civilizations can be discovered in the alleys of the old city and the emblematic Venetian Port.
(Photo: Moonik. Creative commons, Wikimedia)
Getting to Chania
If you have time you can take the ferry from Athens (port of Piraeus) to Chania (port of Souda), using Anek Lines or Blue Star Ferries. The ferry departs daily at 21:00 and arrives at Chania at 06:00. There is a local bus service from the port of Souda to the city centre every 20 minutes and it costs 2 euros.
For those who are on a tighter schedule, the nearest airport is Chania international airport, 10 km from Chania. It is served by Aegean Airlines, Ryanair, Transavia, Easyjet, Germanwings, SAS etc. A shuttle bus will take you into the town of Chania in 30 minutes for a modest 2,5 euros.
The other airport is Heraklion international airport, the largest in Crete, which is located 180 km from Chania, and is served by Aegean Airlines, Austrian, Easyjet, Transavia, Germanwings, etc. From Heraklion, there is a coach to Chania every hour, the duration of the trip is approximately 3 hours and costs 15,10 euros.
If no convenient direct flights are available to the Cretan airports, there are many flights to the largest airport in Greece, Athens international airport. From there you can take a transfer flight to Chania Airport with Aegean Air or Ryanair.
It is well worth lookng into the cost of flights early as May is already the beginning of the tourist season. Booking well in advance can be advantageous, as can last minute deals if airlines put on extra flights to cope with demand. But there are no hard and fast rules…
Accommodation
The Museum of Typography has organised block bookings in centrally located hotels at different prices, but places are going fast. Not to worry though, because Chania is an important tourist centre and offers a wide range of accommodation to suit all budgets (to be found on all the usual online booking services.)