Swiss style (also Swiss school or Swiss design) is a trend in graphic design, formed in the 1950s–1960s under the influence of such phenomena as the International Typographic Style, Russian Constructivism, the tradition of the Bauhaus school, the International Style, and classical modernism.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 84–101.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998. The Swiss style is associated with the activities of Swiss graphic artists, but its principles spread into many other countries.Hollis R. Swiss Graphic Design: The Origins and Growth of an International Style, 1920—1965. New Haven: Yale University Press: 2001.

Term There is difficulty in defining the boundaries of the term "Swiss style".Scotford M. Is There a Canon of Graphic Design History? // AIGA Design Journal, 1991. Vol. 9. N. 2. pp. 36–39.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 84–101. Due to the wide distribution of the Swiss style in different countries, it is also often identified as the international phenomenon. Sometimes this concept is confused with the term International Style, which denotes the architectural system of the 1920s – 1960s and which, in turn, is associated with the development of architectural modernism in the international space (Europe, Asia, Russia, America, etc.).Frampton K. Modern Architecture: A Critical History. London: Thames and Hudson, 1980. The term Swiss Style is also sometimes erroneously completely identified with the concept of International Typographic Style: the Swiss school, being a continuation of the International Typographic Style, is an autonomous phenomenon.Hollis R. Swiss Graphic Design: The Origins and Growth of an International Style, 1920—1965. New Haven: Yale University Press: 2001. Swiss style is an independent system associated with the formation of the graphic style of the 1950s – 1960s.

General characteristics Swiss style is associated with the formation of new principles of graphic design. They were created based on graphic concepts identified by the Bauhaus school, Russian constructivism, and the International Typographic Style.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998. The basic principles of the Swiss style include minimalist graphics, the use of a modular grid system, asymmetrical layout and sans-serif fonts.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 84–101. Swiss style is considered the basis of modern graphic design. In particular, it is believed that many elements of computer design (in particular, Flat Design) were formed under the influence of the Swiss style.Vasileva E.V., Garifullina (Aristova) Zh.S. Flat-Design and the System of International style: graphic principles and visual form // Sign: problem field of media education. 2018. No. 3 (29). pp. 43–49. The Swiss style is associated with the development of modern forms and the graphic basis of corporate identity.

Swiss style and its prototypes

The development of the Swiss style is associated with the formation of new principles in graphic design and is correlated with a number of prototypes, in particular, such as De Stijl, Russian constructivism, the Bauhaus school, International Typographic Style, etc.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998. Ernst Keller had a fundamental influence on the development of the Swiss school.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It's Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 84–101. Having started teaching at the School of Applied Sciences in Zürich in 1918, he outlined the basic principles of the future Swiss School, and also contributed to the formation of a whole generation of graphic designers. The masters trained by Keller formed the basis of the Swiss school of graphic design. One of Keller's students was Josef Müller-Brockmann, who perfected the modular grid system and made it the basis of both the Swiss style and modern graphic design.Müller-Brockmann J. Grid systems in graphic design / Rastersysteme für die visuelle Gestaltung. Teufen: Verlag Arthur Niggli, 1981.

Arts and Crafts Movement

The idea of reform of applied graphics was outlined within the Arts and Crafts movement.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998. Applied arts in general and applied graphics in particular were presented as the most important elements of the artistic system. The Swiss school used little or no stylistic elements of the Arts and Crafts Movement. However, the idea of new graphics, which first formed the basis of the International Typographic Style and then the Swiss Style, is associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 87.

Werkbunds: Germany and Switzerland

Founded in 1907, the Deutscher Werkbund was focused on the development of industrial arts and crafts.Schwartz F. The Werkbund: Design Theory and Mass Culture Before the First World War. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1996. In 1913, on the initiative of Henry van de Velde, the Swiss Werkbund was founded, the purpose of which was to spread the ideas of new art and craft in Switzerland. The industrial basis and focus on functional applied forms proposed by the German and Swiss Werkbunds influenced the formation of the functional concept of the Swiss style.Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 84–101.Hollis R. Swiss Graphic Design: The Origins and Growth of an International Style, 1920—1965. New Haven: Yale University Press: 2001.

Art education reform

The development of the Swiss school is associated not only with the development of industrial ideas, but also with the reform of art education in Switzerland. These changes affected the curricula of schools in Zürich and Basel (Schule für Gestaltung Basel).Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 90 Transformations in this area are associated with the name of Julius de Pretere, a Belgian artist and graphic artist, who in 1906 was appointed the new rector of the School of Applied Arts in Zürich.Rousseeuw B. De handpersdrukken van Julius de Praetere voor het eerst bijeengebracht. Ausstellungskatalog. Essen, Carbolineum Pers, 1999. De Preteret's reforms and course changes he introduced in 1908 reorganized design education. The new art education focused less on classical art forms and relied more on the possibilities of industrial design.

Ernst Keller In 1918, Ernst Keller began teaching at the School of Applied Arts in Zürich (the school itself was founded in 1878).Vasileva E. (2021) The Swiss Style: It’s Prototypes, Origins and the Regulation Problem // Terra Artis. Arts and Design, 3, 94. Keller developed a course in graphic design and typography. In his works, Keller used simple geometric shapes, intense colors, based on fundamentally simple graphic solutions. These techniques will subsequently be used by masters of the Swiss school. Keller shaped many future principles of Swiss design.

Constructivism, De Stijl, Bauhaus

New art movements such as Constructivism, De Stijl, and Bauhaus marked the future visual program of the Swiss style.Brändle C.; Gimmi K.; Junod B.; Reble C.; Richter B. 100 Years of Swiss Graphic Design. Museum für Gestaltung Zürich. Zürich: Lars Müller Publishers, 2014.Vasileva E. (2016) Ideal and utilitarian in the international style system: subject and object in the design concept of the 20th century // International Journal of Cultural Research, 4 (25), 72–80. Graphic elements formed within the framework of Russian Constructivism, the De Stijl movement, and the Bauhaus artistic tradition formed the basis of the Swiss style.Hollis R. Swiss Graphic Design: The Origins and Growth of an International Style, 1920—1965. New Haven: Yale University Press: 2001.

International typographic style

An important basis for the future of the Swiss style was the development of the International Typographic Style in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1928, the book "New Typography" was published, written by the German designer and graphic artist Jan Tschichold.Tschichold J. Die neue Typographie. Ein Handbuch für zeitgemäß Schaffende. Berlin: Verlag des Bildungsverbandes der Deutschen Buchdrucker, 1928. "New Typography" outlined the basic principles of the International Typographic Style, the techniques, ideology, and principles of which were the basis of the Swiss style.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998.

Style features Many of the principles developed within the Swiss style were outlined within the International Typographic Style. Swiss graphics used these principles as a basic platform, but reworked them into a new, streamlined style. The principles of the International Typographic Style were refined within the framework of Swiss design. These basic principles include techniques such as the use of modular grids, asymmetrical layout, choosing simple sans-serif fonts, left alignment, and white space on the page.Hollis R. Swiss Graphic Design: The Origins and Growth of an International Style, 1920—1965. New Haven: Yale University Press: 2001.Meggs P. A History of Graphic Design. N. Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998.

Using the grid system

The idea of a modular grid arose at the beginning of the 20th century and was adjusted within the framework of the International Typographic Style in the 1920s and 1930s. The classic understanding of the modular system was formulated in the works of Josef Müller-Brockmann – most notably in the book The Grid System in Graphic Design.Müller-Brockmann J. Grid systems in graphic design / Rastersysteme für die visuelle Gestaltung. Teufen: Verlag Arthur Niggli, 1981. Improved by Swiss designers, the modular grid is considered the basis of the Swiss style and a key element of modern graphic design.

Simple fonts

A recognizable feature of the Swiss style was the use of simple fonts – that is, sans-serif fonts. Simple fonts were used as a minimalist component and formed an alternative to the old serifs antiqua common in 19th-century printing. Simple fonts made it possible to create a new style that was considered not only practical, but also modern. One of the most famous typefaces was Helvetica, developed in 1957 by the Swiss typographer Max Miedinger with the participation of Eduard Hoffmann. The use of simple fonts became a distinctive feature of the Swiss school and a marker of new design.

Asymmetrical arrangement of elements

Asymmetrical layout was inherited by the Swiss school from the tradition of the International Typographic Style. Originating in the 1920s, the tradition of asymmetrical text layout became fundamental in Swiss graphic design. The Swiss school made asymmetry the basis of the graphic style, improving the techniques of asymmetrical layout and creating its stable standard.

Using empty space The use of empty space is another technique inherited from the Swiss School in the tradition of the International Typographic Style. The free space was intended to create a better sense of balance within the design. The use of empty space in the tradition of the Swiss school has become the basis of modern graphic minimalism.

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