Constructive Graphic Art – Works by Lohse, Neuburg, Vivarelli

Original poster designed by Hans Neuburg for the 1958 exhibition “Konstruktive Grafik” at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Zurich, which featured works by the Zurich graphic designers Richard P. Lohse, Hans Neuburg, and Carlo Vivarelli: all of whom were advocates of a design based on a precise structure, one that eliminates any trace of personality or artistry and is entirely dedicated to conveying information—that is, the style that would later come to be known as the Swiss Style and remains so to this day (which is not to say it was without competition; some considered it cold, repetitive, and formalistic).

The exhibition curated by Josef Müller-Brockmann – another representative of the strict Zurich School, who had even taken over the specialized graphic design class at the School of Arts and Crafts a year earlier – ultimately proved to be the nucleus of the programmatic «New Graphic Design – The International Journal for Graphic Design and Related Subjects.» Between 1958 and 1965, the editorial collective consisting of four graphic designers published 18 issues in which protagonists of the Swiss School, and particularly the Zurich faction, conducted an essential discourse on the fundamentals not only of constructive design, but on the fundamentals of communication in an increasingly interconnected world itself.

In other words: The International Typographic Style, as it is also known, is by no means limited to posters; it also encompasses logos and symbols, advertisements, brochures, and even the design of trade show booths—in short, corporate identity.

In hindsight, it turned out that the trilingual magazine had such an impact on professional colleagues in the Western hemisphere that it became something like the bible of graphic design, popularizing the objective-conceptual approach—especially within the burgeoning corporate design of increasingly global enterprises. Thus, «Neue Grafik» may not have made the triumph of the «Swiss Style» possible in the first place, but it certainly spread its impact much more widely. And all this because of an exhibition that was barely reported on in the press.

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The Film | Museum of Decorative Arts, Zurich