A Century of Swiss Posters
Design Museum Dedel presents over 200 very rare posters from Switzerland. The oldest is from 1885. It is the first exhibition in a series in which a different country will be the theme. The posters on the bel etage are arranged chronologically, so that the visitor is given an impression based on the advertisements of the time.
Three themes have been highlighted: the fashion posters, political posters and the artistic development around the Avant Garde and the Bauhaus. The Swiss posters are striking because of their quality: they were printed on better paper than elsewhere in Europe and on a larger standard size.
In the chronological section (Salon and Hall), products that Switzerland is known for are advertised: chocolate, watches, travel and the railways. This results in interesting confrontations. Famous designers such as Emil Cardinaux, Charles Loupot, Otto Baumberger and Otto Morach have provided posters for this.
An important aspect are the posters for fashion. A grand advertising battle took place between clothing companies PKZ and Grieder that has resulted in spectacular posters. Fritz Seigner shows a poster in three parts that he made for PKZ. These can be found in the Bedroom on the front right.
The third theme is politics (Middle Room front). Referendums are a typical Swiss phenomenon. Poster campaigns were conducted around the consultations, of which speaking examples can be seen here, including by Burkhard Mangold and Melchior Annen. The poster AGAINST women's suffrage remained anonymous.