thirty, an exhibition celebrating 30 years of one of the first archives devoted to graphic design, opens at the 41 Cooper Gallery on September 10.

The exhibition reveals the many hidden gems amongst thousands of pieces of design ephemera in The Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design & Typography's collection.

Made to recreate the archive in the gallery space, visitors will be able to see highlights from the collection arranged in flat files, the same ones used by researchers in the center.

The work on view will span two centuries and several continents, including several one-of-a-kind, rarely seen pieces of design, like the pilot issue of Life magazine, a sketch of a logo for MTV and a 19th century bill of sale.

All aspects of the exhibition will tie to the theme of the Lubalin Center's 30th anniversary. There will be 30 posters from the collection; a set of flat files with 30 drawers containing 30 themes/designers from the collection; 30 comments by different designers and critics about 30 pieces from the archive; and highlights from 30 exhibitions the Center has staged since its inception.