PIET ZWART - PROFILE OF AN EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNER

An essay by Sibu Matimba

DICHOTOMY OR JUXTAPOSITION?
Typotekt!
I

An innovative fusion of the words typography and architecture (architekt in Dutch) meaning one who builds pages with typeII. This idiosyncratic term is in essence what drew my attention to the life of Piet Zwart and is typical of the playful verbal and visual puns that enlivened his work. His own logo is a classic example of his creative facility. Zwart (the Dutch word for the color black) is
INSERT i Piet Zwarts personal logo

represented

visually as

black square juxtaposed

against a large capital P written in a bold grotesque font. The text of his name in the upper left corner of the logo (also sans serif) at once lends artistic balance to the composition and seems to give a tongue-in-cheek translation of the pun.

My expectation, at first, was that I had discovered a designer who had managed to marry the fundamentals of tangible threedimensional construction to the typographic representations of graphic design. However, further study of this designers lifes work reveals not a dichotomous identity in the world

QUOTATION

DESIGN
Design is not a matter of taste but an expression of our attitude toward life, dictated by the meta cosmos Piet Zwart
Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

I II

Cohen, Arthur Allen. Piet Zwart, Typotekt. New York: Exlibris, 1980. Middendorp, Jan. Dutch Type. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers, 2004

page 1

of design one that straddled two distinct professions but, more of a lifestyle of experimentation within the broader aspects of design and technology.

Throughout his career Zwart intersected many trades, and redefined the boundaries that typically divided them. These included graphic design, architecture, architectural criticism, furniture

design, industrial design, painting, and writing, photography, and design education.
III

INSERT ii

EARLY FUNDAMENTALS
Piet Zwart was born in Zaanijk, Holland in 1885. From 1902 until 1907 he studied at Amsterdams School of Arts and Craft. Teaching art history and drawing at the Girls School of Domestic Sciences in Leeuwarden (19081913) was Zwarts first occupation. This afforded him a broad platform for experimentation in interior design, fabric and
INSERT iii Self-portrait, 1931, collection Dutch Museum of Photography Rotterdam

furniture design.

III

Fridolin Mller [Editor]. Piet Zwart. London: Alec Tiranti, 1966. First edition.

page 2

At this point, Zwarts modernist ideal had INFLUENCES AND OPPORTUNITIES not yet been cultivated - his designs still reflected the decorative motifs typical of the Art Nouveau of the late 19th century. However, his life philosophies were
INSERT iv

1919
FIRST CONTACT WITH DE STIJL
Zwart became aware of the principles and applications of the De Stijl Movement.

already effectively shaped. Ideals such as pacifism, humanitarianism, socialism, being vegetarian and simplicity of lifestyleIV were fostered during his student years and would prove, eventually, to underpin his independent stance in an era widely being reshaped by emerging radical political and socio-economic views.

INSERT V Dadaist influence is evident in this page of a booklet that Zwart designed in 1931 for Trio Printers. Zwarts techniques of repetition and color overlap are evident.

SHIFTING TIMES
The Modern Age brought with it

advancements in technology such as offset lithography and the halftone printing

process which spurred the era of mass communication. Commercial advertising and antiwar art shifted the attention away from the elite classes to the growing middle class in Europe at the turn of the century. From 1905 German Expressionist ideals began to
IV

Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

page 3

permeate Europe and the birth of the Modern Art movement emerged through various interest groups promoting political and social redefinition. Proliferous ornamentation and elaborate display typefaces that cluttered the media were replaced by illustrations reduced to simplified forms, flat backgrounds and short concise messages. German poster style (plakatstil) and French Futurism reflected a rejection of Renaissance ideals and paved the way for Swiss Dadaism and Dutch De Stijl of 1917.V

HISTORICAL CONTEXT 1920s IN THE NETHERLANDS (HOLLAND) It was in this context that Zwart pointed his career towards the architectural field. In 1919 He worked in the offices of Jan Wils (1919 1921) and H. P. Berlage (from 1922) both acclaimed designers of the time. Zwarts versatility enabled him to take

advantage of unexpected opportunities to

INSERT vii Hand lettered poster for the Vickers House Manufacturing Company. It is possible that he was also responsible for designing architectural signage for a Christian Scientist building - a project for which he was the interior architect while with Berlages architectural firm. The building bears a font of close resemblance to the one that Zwart cut for the Vickers House poster.

INFLUENCES AND OPPORTUNITIES

1922 1922
INTRODUCTION TO RUSSIAN CONSTRUCTIVISM
Met El Lissitzky and discovered strong parallels between their experimental works. INSERT vi

Rabinowitz, Tova. Exploring Typography. Design Exploration Series. OnWord Press, 2005

page 4

experiment in the world of modern art. Through providential introductions to clients, artists and other technicians in the industry Zwart began to spend increasingly more time in the graphic design arena. Zwart designed Wils business logo and office stationery and soon he was commissioned to create printed material for Vickers House Manufacturers. Without any formal training in the discipline of typography, Zwart learned about typography from the QUOTATION

THE TASK
The task of functional typography is to create a form of typographical design in harmony with the present age, a form free of traditional conventions and as animated as possible. Piet Zwart
Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

technical assistant at a small print company during his lunch hours. One appointment led to another and Zwarts ability to adapt to emerging design paradigms and graphic techniques ultimately shifted his career into one of influence and innovation.

PIONEER OF FUNCTIONAL TYPOGRAPHY

VI

As

typographer,

in

the

strictest

QUOTATION

definition of the profession, Zwarts work in the development of typestyles was very limited. His earliest typographic

DESIGN
The task of a functional typographeris to find clear, well-ordered means of visual expression which shall be decided by modern typographical problems and modern methods (e.g., phototype, techniques such as machine setting, type writer script and photographic settings). It is to break with the spirit of handwork Piet Zwart
Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic
Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

work (1920) incorporated hand-lettering of constructed square letters combined with his own design of sanserif fat-face similar to the styles of Wijdeveld and van

VI

Jaffe, Dr. Hans L. C. Pioneer of functional Typography. Neue Grafik, No. 10. Page 6. Zurich, 1961
page 5

Doesburg at the time. Soon afterward, in pursuit of greater efficiency, he began

sourcing letters, blanks and symbols from local print houses least forms. to that produced and the most Zwart of

simplest, pragmatic continued

INSERT viii Bruynzeels modular kitchen of 1937 set a new standard for interior modular design and industrial design. The interchangeable options and fitted appliances were break through developments at the time.

decorated In his the

writings

press

importance

improving the existing typefaces to optimize their corporate His marketability strong and brutal towards and

legibility.VII producing

bias

user-friendly

products

influencing the arts to be more useful to the end consumer are recognized as one of Zwarts biggest contributions to the world of typography and graphic design as a whole. Ultimately, his greatest aim was to give a new form to typography and to reform an art that had lost all distinctionVIII.

Through experimental advertising Zwart reinforced within the public arena the design manifestos of emergent modern movements particularly the

QUOTATION

NKF CATALOG
Although these designs appear to be very simple things without much pretension, I find this work very important a sign of our times. Piet Zwart
Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

philosophies of the Dadaists, De Stijl group and Russian Constructivists.

VII VIII

Middendorp, Jan. Dutch Type. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers, [2004]. Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

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INNOVATIONS IN ZWARTS WORK Piet Zwart was also known to identify THE NKF CATALOG himself as a form engineer or form technician .
IX

1925 1925
Zwarts work has been characterized by: rejection of traditional hierarchy and structure of page layouts; very simple [designs] without pretension; radical application of a new design vocabulary: raw, extreme, experimental; the use of echoes of themes throughout a body of work; the use of diagrammatic maps to create recognition by memory association; the use of colorful shapes. page layouts with: vigorous, open asymmetrical layouts cinematic visual flow dynamic unity between form and message facilitated by the authorship of his own copy white space ebbing and flowing as positive design elements; lucid words and images, especially by way of incorporating photographs; photography switched from professional photographers t self photography in 1926.

Practicality

and

experimentation were his most distinctive traits, which he applied to the many design platforms on which he worked, often

concurrently. He is also hailed by some as one of the torch-bearers

X

of

early

Dutch Functionalism

alongside other

contemporary experimental designers such as Paul Schuitema. Their work, although not formulated on, aligned with the tenets of the new typography as published by German typographer Jan Tischold.

The

introduction

of

photographs

into

Zwarts graphic vocabulary was a move that clearly set him apart in the industry. At first he hired local photography

He developed his own personal razor sharp technique which stood at odds with the softer, painted look of the day; focal points that shift unexpectedly throughout the body of work; diagonal placement of photos and text; photomontage with a modern and crisp edge technique; bold type overprinting images; repetition of forms. INSERT ix

professionals but by 1926 he was an active photographer. Zwarts new skill enabled him to break away from the photographic

IX

Van Os, Maarten. Piet Zwart 1885-1977 Form Engineer. Website of the Dutch Municipal Museum (Gemeentemuseum Den Haag). 21 June 2008. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag. 6 November 2009 <http://www.gemeentemuseum.nl>. X Middendorp, Jan. Dutch Type. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers, [2004].
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style of the time which favored softer that INFLUENCES AND OPPORTUNITIES was paid homage to hand painting. Zwart departed strongly from that tradition

1928 1928
PTT COMMISSIONS (1928 1940)
Zwart adopted certain De Stijl principles: reduction of art and design graphics to their most minimal expression; use of elemental geographic forms; use of primary colors.

producing images with crisp edges, and high definition. into These his images, more when

incorporated

prominent

graphics projects gained him critical acclaim in the industry and became hallmarks of modern visual representation.

1937 1937
BRUYNZEEL KITCHEN
Points of departure from the movement: Zwart never joined the group. Zwart broke away from the restrictive vertical and horizontal emphasis He reintroduced more colors into his work especially through overlaying and interplays of elements.

FAMOUS COMMISSIONS Regardless of the arena, Zwart never

allowed himself to be locked into any one professional or even temporal paradigm. The strictness of the parameters set by the avant-garde movements of the time was too limiting to and Zwarts he many was experimental found use

19431943-1944 43
NAZI DETENTION
Zwart was detained and held separate from his wife and family when Hitlers regime reacted strongly against artistic expression. Upon his release Zwart continued with many of the long term design contracts and associations that he had made over the course of his career. He died in Leidschendam on September 24th 1977 INSERT x

predisposition elements of

contemporary

philosophies in different contexts.

Notable projects that Piet Zwart has been recognized for even to date are:

page 8

1923 Verloop Estate Agents poster. 1925 The NKF catalog of International Exhibition of film / the Hague, 1928 PTT Postal Service commission for advertising and postage stamps. Contracts continued until1940. 1931 Trio Printers booklet. 1937 Bruynzeels modular kitchen. QUOTATION

WORKWORK-LIFE
What is the beauty of this kind of work? That it is a slice of life and that it is also your whole life. Piet Zwart
Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

THE LEGACY OF PIET ZWART I submit that we find ourselves in this present age at another such shifting period of history. The proliferation of information in this present age could be compared to the glut of the emerging print material of post world war 1 Europe. Unstable global economic markets have lead to a re-evaluation of the role and
INSERT ix A page from the famous NKF catalog incorporated elements of photography, sans-serif typefaces and graphic shapes. The elements such as the black bars were practical elements to tie the pages together visually as well as mask areas of typically high wear and tear through use.

necessity of design in the commercial realm. Thus, the question arises how does the design professional remain

relevant and effective amidst the sea of graphic images produced by professionals

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and amateurs alike on widely available personal desktop publishing software and web media? Perhaps the ability of the designer to navigate this season and

emerge as a valuable and essential asset to the evolving digital revolution may hinge on ones ability and to make necessary across

crossovers

integrations

INSERT x Zwarts industrial sources and austere crisp technique for his photography spoke of his modernist ideals.

traditional definitions of design professions. More importantly, the innovation and

versatility of Zwart would lend itself well to the creation of design manifestos for the digital age that would help to bring meaning to the vast quantity of eclectic material that is, once again, the order of the day.
INSERT xi Zwarts career crossed over into the film industry. These classic posters are collecters items and are currently shown in museum settings.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cohen, Arthur Allen. Piet Zwart, Typotekt. New York: Exlibris, 1980

Jaffe, Dr. Hans L. C. Pioneer of functional Typography. Neue Grafik, No. 10. Page 6. Zurich, 1961

Meggs, Philip B. Piet Zwarts NKF Catalog, Graphic Design History. New York: Allworth Press, 2001.

Middendorp, Jan. Dutch Type. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers, [2004].

Rabinowitz, Tova. Exploring Typography. Design Exploration Series. OnWord Press, 2005.

Van Os, Maarten. Piet Zwart 1885-1977 Form Engineer. Website of the Dutch Municipal Museum (Gemeentemuseum Den Haag). 21 June 2008. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag. 6 November 2009 <http://www.gemeentemuseum.nl>.

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