Aicher Otl

Early Life Otl Aicher was a German graphic designer, information designer, and typographer. Born in , Germany in 1922, Aicher grew up with an interest in philosophy, literature, and art. After the out break of the second world war, Aicher was forced, against his beliefs, to fight as part of the German Nazi party. After the war Aicher returned to Ulm in an effort to rebuild it. His efforts to do so culminated in the creation of Ulmer Krei, meaning Ulm circle of friends. This was a series of lectures that allowed those who had been devastated by the war to gather and discuss subjects of philosophy and literature. Out of this came his first design job: he created the posters that advertised what became known as the Thursday Lectures. By 1964, the Thursday lectures started to include practical education courses. This lead to the opening of Ulmer Volkshoschule which was geared towards adult education.

Büro Aicher and HfG In 1947 Aicher opened his first design firm, Büro Aicher. His first client was the Ulmer Volkshoschule who he designed the identity, broachers, and posters for. After doing this for a few years, Aicher along with his wife and Swiss designer established Hoshschule für Gestating (HfG). This was a design new light after World War II. Aicher and school for architects, product, and graphic his team created a system of pictograms designers. It embodied, as Aicher put it that would later go on to revolutionize “diverse education, objectivity of design communication design and pictogram methodology, and an embrace of the design. This along with the posters industrial age”. During his time at HfG, also created for the games has become Aicher designed the corporate identity for Aicher’s most famous work. German airline . Later Life Olympics After the 1972 Olympics, Aicher and his In 1968 HfG closed and Aicher went back family moved to the Allgäu region of to running Büro Aicher. It was at this Germany. There he bought a property point that he was approached by the called Rotis where he built two studios. Olympic committee to create the identity He called these studios the “Autonomous and the iconography for the Munich 1972 Republic of Rotis”. Throughout the 70’s summer Olympic games. Aicher took this and 80’s Aicher continued to design for as an opportunity to put Germany in a many different people and companies. In 1986 he began to design four new typefaces that would complement Universe, the typeface solely used for his design of the 1972 Olympic games. In 1991 Aicher was killed in an automobile accident.

Design Theory Otl Aicher was an extremely influential designer who was governed by reason and sense. After the war he came up with a design philosophy that can be found in all of his work; he believed that the only way to distinguish good design from bad design was to see if it worked in reality. Good design should serve the everyday life of people. Munich

Olympics

The Goal time created consistency with room for Aicher referred to as “Ziechensprache” In 1968 Olt Aicher was approached by variety. It also made it extremely easy meaning symbol language. The system the Olympic Committee to design the to understand what the event were made it extremely easy for people identity and iconography for the 1972 without having to read anything at all. from all over the world with different Munich Olympics. Still highly affected This was the primary goal of Aicher and languages to navigate throughout by the war, Aicher wanted to steer this his team: to create a visual system of the games very easily. This symbol project in a way that focused solely on communication that transcended all language that was created for the 1972 the athletes without any suggestion of language barriers. games would go on to set the precedent propaganda. This was his opportunity for all of the future Olympic games as to show a different Germany to the The Pictograms well as future international pictogram world. He and his team created colorful This visual communication system designs. posters that had been influenced by can best be seen in the design of the the local Bavarian culture. The imagery pictograms created for the games. A New Language created for the posters was free and With the idea of a pictorial language Along with the posters and the powerful, usually featuring the athletes in mind, Aicher and his team created pictograms, Aicher created Germnay’s participating in the event for which the icons for each sporting event that took first mascot for the games. Named poster advertised. These loose and on a strong functional aspect, only Waldi, this little dachshund fell into colorful images were then placed on a taking the aesthetics into account his strict grid system but was also very strict grid system. The rest of the secondary. Aicher felt that the world seen as cute yet athletic. This gave poster would consist of very simple text had been overly stimulated with visuals the design of the games a softer side, that read “München 1972” always in the and he wanted to create a new “visual which helped with Aicher’s goal of typeface Univers. The system that he environment for the eye”. The point repainting Germany’s reputation. The created for these posters allowed for a was clear communication and the biggest design problem that Aicher free and colorful design but at the same icons created for this olympics did just and his team faced was the design of that. Based on a strict orthogonal and the Olympic emblem. His first designs diagonal grid, all visual elements were were turned down but finally after a arranged at 90 or 45 degree angles. year of uncertainty a team member The original pieces were created out merged Aicher’s original garland of cardboard cutouts that allowed the design with a spiral, creating the final team to move them around freely and emblem for the games. Aicher and his see what worked and what did not. The team created an identity system for resulting 180 pictograms were what these games that became one of the most important design achievements in visual communication. The easy to understand, purely visual icons and images, set the standard that the rest of the world would follow shortly. Gerd Arntz

Arntz and Neurath information without the use of words. he designed for the Munich Olympics. Born in Germany in 1900, Gerd Arntz This lead to the creation of ISOTOPE grew up surrounded by social and (the international system of typographic Design Theory political unrest. This inspired him to picture education). The pictograms Otl and Arntz had similar ideas on create work that demonstrated his created had the ability to narrate visual design, both being concerned with political views. When he was 19 he material without the addition of any readability and simplicity. Both of their joined a movement that wanted to unnecessary details. Over the course of work shows an attention to detail that turn Germany into a socialist state this work, Arntz’s created about 4000 allowed for an easily recognizable visual based on direct popular democracy. different pictograms. Each one was language. Their ability to recognize This movement was connected to a created with legibility in mind, with this need and create pictograms that group based in Cologne called the the goal of transcending all language transcended all language barriers is “Progressive Artist Group” or “Gruppe barriers. Although there was very little something that both share in design Progressive Künstle Köln”. He began to added decoration, Arntz still managed history. Along with a similar aesthetic create artwork that depicted the hard to inject a little humor into his designs. and view on design they shared a and unfair life of the working class. This humor came through in different similarity in ideology, both having been He created this work out of simple ways like how a man would hold a opposed to the rise of Hitler and the abstract figures made out of woodcuts. newspaper or a lunchbox. German Natzi party. Each one started The simplicity and readability of his their design careers in an effort to work got the attention of Otto Neurath. Influence combat the political and social unrest Neurath wanted to create a graphic Arntz’s and Neurath’s isotopes went on that was occurring in Germany during means of communicating information. to influence all symbol and pictogram each of their lives. Their strong sense of He needed a designer who could create designs thereafter, including the work of duty and political awareness lead each simple signs and pictograms that could Otl Aicher. Aicher drew inspiration from of them into the field of design. be easily recognizable. Arntz’s clear the pictograms that had been created cut style was perfect and together by Arntz. Otl used these pictograms and Arntz and Neurath began to create a others as a starting point for the ones set of images that could communicate is what made it so beautiful. This is what I strive for in my work but at the same time is very hard to get past the aesthetics and focus on the meaning.

Freedom of Design Aicher also demonstrated that strict grids and formality can exist in harmony with free lines and bursts of color. The posters that he created for the olympic games did just that. He made colorful and provocative posters that lived happily within a grid. He combined structure with freedom and consistency with variety. Along with there amazing My Design Theory aesthetic properties, these posters were For me, the most important aspect of highly functional, easy to understand, Inspirationgraphic design is clear communication. and very simple. I am drawn to this The goal of a design should be to get design because I like structure in my across what ever message it needs to in work and I believe it is very important. a way that is easily understandable to At the same time I also that freedom anyone looking at it. I originally became is an integral part. This is something interested in design because unlike art, that Aicher was able to achieve in his it had a clear purpose that conveyed design. a distinct message in an aesthetically pleasing way. If done correctly, there is Inspiration no secret to what the designer is trying The work that Aicher did is inspiring to say. to me because it combines the most important aspects of design in a Aicher and I clearly thought out way. His work has I have always been drawn to symbols revolutionized the way that way finding and the power that they hold. I like systems operate and have opened up symbols because they say everything the world of visual communication. that needs to be said in a short and There is a quote by Aicher that reads concise way. One simple well designed “good art inspires, good design picture of an escalator and an arrow motivates “. This very simple statement completely eliminates the need for a says a lot about design and is part sign that reads “the escalator is to your of the reason why I find design so left”. I am a person who likes to say a compelling. lot with as few words as possible. I also enjoy when other people do the same. This is why I was drawn to Otl Aicher’s work, particularly the work he did for the 1972 Munich Olympics.

Communication Aicher went about this project in a way that I believe all design should be thought about: communication first, aesthetics second. This is easily said but externally hard to do in reality and is only something that great designers have figured out how to do. It is amazing to me that he put aesthetics secondary. The work that was produced for these games was so beautiful that it is hard to fathom that this was the case. This showed me that if done correctly a design can be aesthetically pleasing and completely functional at the same time. Perhaps the clarity of his work