ARPAD ELFER (?-1999) D.H. EVANS / SCHOOL WISE. Circa 1948. 29 1/2x39 3/4 inches, 75x101 cm. Colman Prentis & Varley Ltd., [London.] Condition A-: minor repaired tears and creases at edges; repaired pin holes in corners. When Arpad Elfer died on August 18th, 1999, The Independent (London) had the following glowing obituary: "[He] was one of the most charismatic of creative directors in post-war advertising. He was a superb visualiser who could encapsulate the mood, style and desirability of a product in ways that would excite the client and appeal to the public." Born in Hungary, he became an orphan during World War I. He studied art in Berlin, and spent most of his adult life as an Art Director. In 1933 he worked in Paris for Dorland and Crawfords and then moved to London where he joined Colman, Prentis & Varley. He became Art Director of the firm in 1946 and shortly thereafter created this memorable campaign for the store D.H. Evans. His playful and colorful photomontages synthesized the techniques of the great avant-garde designers into an effortless style all his own. Encyclopedie de l'Affiche p. 176, Fotoplakate 201.
![ARPAD ELFER (?-1999). D.H. EVANS / SCHOOL WISE. Circa 1948. 29x39 inches, 75x101 cm. Colman Prentis & Varley Ltd., [London.]](https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/full//279\709279.jpg)
