Jan Tschichold and the New Typography in Weimar Germany

Our November event featured Professor Paul Stirton who explored the influence and work of ‘Die Neue Typographie’ movement through the lens of typographer Jan Tschichold’s life and work. Paul’s talk came hot on the heels of the publication of his book, “Jan Tschihold and the New Typography” (Yale University Press), and the exhibition of the same name that he curated at the Bard Graduate Center Gallery (New York) earlier in 2019. Tschichold and other artist-designers involved in the movement were instrumental in revolutionising visual culture in the inter-war years in Germany and central Europe. Die Neue Typographie style is typified by asymmetrical layouts, san serif letterforms, and the integration of photography with text in a manner that expressed a new and modern sensibility. Their designs, elemental and dynamic in character, were applied to everyday graphics, from film posters to book sleeves..

About our speaker

Paul Stirton’s interests are in graphic design, interiors, and print culture. He has masters degrees from the University of Edinburgh and the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. Since completing a PhD at the University of Glasgow, he has worked as an academic in the UK and USA. Currently he is a senior lecturer in art history at Glasgow University, and also holds an associate professorship of modern European design history at the Bard Graduate Center, where his research is mostly focused on late 19th and early 20th century architecture and design in Britain and Hungary. Paul has published several books and articles on nineteenth and twentieth century art and design. These include Britain and Hungary: Contacts in Architecture and Design (2000). He is also editor of West 86th: A Journal of Decorative Arts, Design History, and Material Culture (University of Chicago Press).

Recording