Geigy style
The Museum für Gestaltung Zürich presents a history of Swiss design through the advertising of the former Geigy company in Basel.
Before Geigy merged with Ciba and the two merged with Sandoz to form Novartis, the Basel-based chemical company had long had a surprising branding. "Geigy researches for tomorrow" - the former Basel-based chemical company also lived up to this future-oriented motto in its communications. The advertising department of the chemical company became famous for its "Geigy style". At the time, the studio at the Basel headquarters was regarded as one of the most important talent factories for Swiss graphic design. It also had good contacts with the Basel General Vocational School, the Association of Swiss Graphic Designers and the Swiss Advertising Association.
Roland Aeschlimann, Karl Gerstner, Jörg Hamburger, Steff Geissbühler, Andreas His, Toshihiro Katayama and Nelly Rudin, among others, worked at Geigy under the long-standing direction of Max Schmid. Freelance designers such as Michael Engelmann, Gottfried Honegger, Armin Hofmann, Herbert Leupin, Warja Lavater, Numa Rick and Niklaus Stoecklin were also commissioned. In addition to René Groebli and Peter Hemann, Jakob Tuggener and René Burri as well as the architectural photographer Ezra Stoller also worked as photographers.
When Markus Kutter had to organize Geigy's 200th anniversary as an employee in 1958 and teamed up with Karl Gerstner, the foundations were laid for what would later become GGK.
In the 1960s, the Basel studio also followed the development of the studios of its subsidiaries in the USA and Great Britain and thus increasingly focused on advertising. With products sold internationally, Geigy and advertising from Switzerland made a significant contribution to the worldwide spread of the "Swiss style" in the graphics scene in the 1950s and 1960s.
The exhibition at the Zurich Museum of Design is the first comprehensive presentation of this important Swiss contribution to design history. The exhibition "Good Design, Good Business" shows Swiss graphics and advertising produced by J. R. Geigy's advertising department between 1940 and 1970. More than 300 exhibits can be seen in the exhibition. On display are posters, advertisements, advertising cards, brochures, magazines and books, as well as records, promotional gifts and packaging.
The exhibition will be on display until May 24. On March 5, Jean Etienne Aebi, Ruedi Baur and Stefan Haas will discuss "Good Design = Good Business? - Design as an advertising factor" in a panel discussion. On May 5, Richard Hollis, Manuel Krebs and Lars Müller will debate "Swiss Style forever? - Swiss
Graphics today".
Andreas Panzeri
Roland Aeschlimann, Karl Gerstner, Jörg Hamburger, Steff Geissbühler, Andreas His, Toshihiro Katayama and Nelly Rudin, among others, worked at Geigy under the long-standing direction of Max Schmid. Freelance designers such as Michael Engelmann, Gottfried Honegger, Armin Hofmann, Herbert Leupin, Warja Lavater, Numa Rick and Niklaus Stoecklin were also commissioned. In addition to René Groebli and Peter Hemann, Jakob Tuggener and René Burri as well as the architectural photographer Ezra Stoller also worked as photographers.
When Markus Kutter had to organize Geigy's 200th anniversary as an employee in 1958 and teamed up with Karl Gerstner, the foundations were laid for what would later become GGK.
In the 1960s, the Basel studio also followed the development of the studios of its subsidiaries in the USA and Great Britain and thus increasingly focused on advertising. With products sold internationally, Geigy and advertising from Switzerland made a significant contribution to the worldwide spread of the "Swiss style" in the graphics scene in the 1950s and 1960s.
The exhibition at the Zurich Museum of Design is the first comprehensive presentation of this important Swiss contribution to design history. The exhibition "Good Design, Good Business" shows Swiss graphics and advertising produced by J. R. Geigy's advertising department between 1940 and 1970. More than 300 exhibits can be seen in the exhibition. On display are posters, advertisements, advertising cards, brochures, magazines and books, as well as records, promotional gifts and packaging.
The exhibition will be on display until May 24. On March 5, Jean Etienne Aebi, Ruedi Baur and Stefan Haas will discuss "Good Design = Good Business? - Design as an advertising factor" in a panel discussion. On May 5, Richard Hollis, Manuel Krebs and Lars Müller will debate "Swiss Style forever? - Swiss
Graphics today".
Andreas Panzeri
Poster of the current exhibition.
Anonymous. Shop window poster, around 1960.
Max Schmid, Peter Hemann, photo for a book 1955.
Andres Janser, Barbara Junod, book cover 2009.
