Poster Collection 07: Armin Hofmann

The Poster Collection of the Zurich Museum fur Gestaltung offers a record of the history of the poster, in Switzerland and worldwide, from its beginnings in the 19th century to its current existence. The collection is continually being expanded and brought up-to-date, and maintains a continuous dialogue with contemporary output while acknowledging historical achievements. The museum's poster collection is one of the most comprehensive and significant archives of its kind in the world. Poster Collection 07 gathers together the most important posters of Armin Hofmann, presenting them in the context of works by his most famous students. An exceptionally influential graphic-design teacher, Hofmann instructed, and has seen his methods continued by, such practitioners as Nelly Rudin, Karl Gerstner, Pierre Mendell, Klaus Oberer and Grard Ifert. Born in 1920, Hofmann began teaching his own typographic principles at the Basel School of Design in 1947. He and his colleagues contributed to the development of Swiss International Style, advocating a belief in absolute and universal graphic expression. Hofmann also taught at Yale University and the Philadelphia Museum School of Arts. His 1965 Graphic Design Manual is regarded as a fundamental work in the field of modern graphic design and art.