ART

At the turn of the last century, the poster rapidly became a vital force in the visual arts, as artists such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jules Chereet, and Herni Van de Valde helped to establish it as an independent medium for visual communication through which the artist expressed aesthetic ideas through the shapes, colors, and composition of typographic as well as through illustrative elements. The changing nature of communication within twentieth century society demanded a simple, bold, and efficient medium that could be viewed and understood "on the fly."

Switzerland was one of several countries to be influenced by Bauhaus principles of visual composition propounded by constructivist artists such as El Lissitsky and Joseph Albers. They considered the artists as a designer from modern technological society, and offered radical ideas through new and dynamic typographic elements. With the success of the Bauhaus movement, the imagery of machined forms reduced to "functional" simplicity received a powerful international impetus. Although there was some work done during the Depression and World War II, it was only after the war that poster design activity increased. By the mid-1950s, strong, identifiable, groups of poster designers had emerged, producing works of striking boldness and geomometric simplicity.

Through examples of the "Swiss" approaches to posters, this exhibit focuses on the works of several artists/designers who have had considerable international influence on graphic design. They have been drawn from the private collection of noted designer Aaron Marcus, Fellow, AIGA; Member, CHI Academy and the ICOGRADA Graphic Design Hall of Fame; Editor-in-Chief, User Experience (UPA); and Editor, Information Design Journal.