About

This website is derived from an exhaustive research on the Typographische Monatsblätter (TM) focussing on the issues from 1960 till 1990.

The Typographische Monatsblätter was one of the most important journals to successfully disseminate the phenomenon of ‘Swiss typography’ to an international audience. With more than 70 years in existence, the journal witnessed significant moments in the history of typography and graphic design. Its contributors include some of the most influential designers. Although the issues before 1960 are extremely rich in revealing the development of modernist typography, the years 1960–90 correspond to a period of transition in which many factors such as technology, socio-political contexts and aesthetic ideologies, profoundly affected and transformed the fields of typography and graphic design. From this general turbulence, new forms emerged and new models were explicitly manifested. The examination of the Typographische Monatsblätter during these specific years enables a greater understanding of the development of late 20th century typography and graphic design.

Purpose

This website is primarily for sharing selective information collected for a research project within the ECAL/University of Art and Design Lausanne, on the Typographische Monatsblätter during the years 1960 till 1990. It is a reference tool and searchable database containing material intended for personal, educational and non-commercial purposes such as teaching, research, evaluation and commentary.

Content

Covers
The covers are a prominent aspect of the Typographische Monatsblätter, and provide an overall indication of the attitudes and aesthetic concerns of the period in which they were published.

Designers
The designer of each cover is identified and presented in an abridged biography. The information contained in the biographies was collected from personal correspondence, interviews and published material.

Impressum and Contents
An easily searchable database is built from information collected from the printed impressum and table of contents in each issue.

Typefaces
An ongoing section, in which the typefaces for each cover are identified.

Interviews
Over thirty designers and contributors have been interviewed during the course of this project. The interviews offer first-hand material, reveal thoughts and convictions, provide information on the history and operation of the magazine, and impart a valuable understanding of its international impact. The complete contents of the interviews will be periodically added as they are edited in collaboration with the interviewees.

Credits

This project was initiated by Louise Paradis, with the guidance of François Rappo and Roland Früh, as part of her Master degree in Art Direction at the ECAL/University of Art and Design Lausanne, Switzerland. The project continued with the financial support from ECAL and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland (HES-SO).

All the covers of Typographische Monatsblätter were photographed from the private collection of Jean-Pierre Graber, chief editor of TM for over twenty years. M. Graber accepted to lend his collection for this research project and we are infinitely grateful for his gesture.

Project head: ECAL/François Rappo
Research and concept: ECAL/Louise Paradis, ECAL/Roland Früh
Website design: Luke Archer, ECAL/Louise Paradis
Website programming: Luke Archer
Photography: ECAL/Erol Gemma, ECAL/Philippe Fragnière
Typeface: Unica Intermediate

Thanks

Andrea Anner, Luke Archer, Paul Barnes, Federico Berardi, Luc Bergeron, Jonas T. O. Berthod, Anna Bitzer, Florine Bonaventure, Christelle Boulé, Dimitri Bruni, Olga Cafiero, Alex Chew, Jean-Marie Courant, Michael Fent, Philippe Fragnière, Roland Früh, Gilles Gavillet, Stéphane Halmaï-Voisard, André Vladimir Heiz, Richard Hollis, Robert Huber, Barbara Junod, Philippe Karrer, Christoph Knoth, Katharina Köhler, Josef Kratzer, Sarah Leugger, Jonas Marguet, Charles Mathis, Max Neustadt, Jennifer Niederhauser Schlup, Cyril Porchet, François Rappo, Cédric Raccio, Yoo-Mi Steffen, Katharina Tauer, Joël Vacheron, Martina Vierthaler, Ariella Yedgar, and to all the designers and contributors for answering my letters and emails, and for taking the time to meet for interviews.

I would like to thank the ‘Typografische Monatsblätter, Revue suisse de l'imprimerie, Swiss Typographic Magazine’ for their support. The magazine has been running since 1933 and has just recently been discontinued, in 2014, and plans for an annual publication are in the making.

Contact

If you would like to send comments or questions, please say hello!

Copyright Information

For use of images, please credit and link to http://www.tm-research-archive.ch.
© 2012 ECAL/Louise Paradis. All Rights Reserved. Content and images may not be reproduced or disseminated without permission.

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