Conquering the Skies in Swiss poster Art. First edition. New condition.
Geneva: Patrick Cramer, 2008(Alan Wofsy Fine Arts distribution). Decorative board. 32.5 x 23.5 cm. 160 pages, 160 color illustrations,...
The story of the conquest of the air is memorialized one of the great human undertakings. In the nineteenth century, balloon flights were veritable spectacles that attracted crowds and produced remarkable posters, true relics of a daring pioneer era.
In Switzerland, from 1909, the meetings multiplied and met with a success difficult to imagine today. Flight is a dream; aviators are celebrated as heroes. The most important events are accompanied by often very spectacular posters. Today they form an exceptional heritage for their quality and rarity.
The First World War advanced aviation by leaps and bounds. In 1919, the first airlines were created. Their publicity goes through the poster which bears witness to the beginnings of commercial aviation. The biggest names in Swiss poster art, then at the height of their glory, donate works to celebrate the conquest of the sky: Emil Cardinaux, Eric de Coulon, Ernst Emil Schlatter, Otto Baumberger, Niklaus Stoecklin. Through their compositions - and those of many other graphic designers - the history of Swiss aviation can be read in watermark. From the 1930s onwards, posters of large Swiss companies such as Ad Astra, Alpar and above all the Swissair bear witness to their growing commercial importance. To win over affluent customers, these companies pay particular attention to their advertising and secure the services of the best graphic designers. Airshows continue to be all the rage. The posters which advertise them show not only the prowess of pilots, often military, but also the evolution of machines and their modernity.
After World War II, commercial aviation experienced tremendous development. The posters testify with great fidelity to the development of Swissair's global network, its most beautiful planes, its stylish and attentive staff. The compositions of Herbert Leupin, Donald Brun, Heinz Looser, Kurt Wirth or Carlo Vivarelli are broadcast around the world and serve as ambassadors of high-quality Swiss graphic design. The movement continued in the sixties and seventies.
The airshows, after a certain eclipse, find a considerable success and make it possible to discover old devices which appear from now on as an undeniable technical heritage. The posters bear witness to this.
In order to better understand these works, these artists and this exceptional epic, the publisher Patrick Cramer in Geneva is publishing a book retracing the history of this unique and little-known chapter of the Swiss poster. A scholarly text of a historical nature accompanies a rich iconography showing the main posters produced over almost two centuries. Written by Jean-Charles Giroud, it draws on the most recent work in the history of poster art.
This exceptional, richly illustrated book will be of interest to the general public, lovers of applied art and art historians alike.
Jean-Charles Giroud, curator for many years of the collection of posters of the Library of Geneva, has already written numerous books and studies on the Swiss poster. He is now the director of this institution. Item #51-4861
ISBN: 9781556603693
Price: $125.00