Graphic Arts Research Project Summary

Title: Neue Graphik and the development of the international typographic style

Neue Graphic or more commonly the Swiss Style first emerged in the 1950's and also became known as The International Typographic Style due to its heavy reliance on typographic elements. The style gained international recognition and remained strong up until the 1970's when its popularity decreased as more graphic designers began to favour New Wave and Postmodernist methods.

I appriciate the simplicity of this style and its use of clean, nuetral typefaces. During this project i would like to explore the processes and methods behind this style of work and also looking at it's role in graphic design. Looking at the impact it created in graphic design both when it began and today. I want to research into how the Swiss Style spread and influenced the rest of the world and became internationally respected. By looking into magazines produced at the time such as Graphis and Neue Graphik and how they helped propgate the the Swiss style.

I intend to examine the modernt typographic grid and how it aided in the look of the Swiss style and enabled the graphic designer to gain better control over the outcome of their work. I am to find out the advantages and disadvantages of grid systems, and whether sticking to such rules and rigid struce can stifle the graphic designers personal expression and allow for little input of personality.

I want to look at why sans-serif fonts were used and its role in popularising fonts such as Helvetica and Univers. Also looking at the ways in which Swiss designers began to present copy and imagery in thier posters and magazines, imparticularly thier choice of photography over hand-drawn or painted imagery. Also analysing the relationships between photographs and type (typo-photo) and how photography reinforced the idea rather than just acting as decoration. I will examine their use of white space in composition.

I want to look at the kaey aspects of this style, examining page layout, posters, advertising examples and making references to designers that were key in implimenting new methods and a creating unique style