?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 800 - $ 1,200
ERNST KELLER (1891-1968) EIN SCHÖNES BUCH MACHT FREUDE. 1948. 50x35 1/2 inches, 127x90 cm. City/Druck A.G., Zurich. Condition B+: tears and creases in margins and image; wrinkles at edges; tape on verso. Paper. Ernst Keller was one of the fathers of Swiss graphic design, teaching design and typography in Zurich's famous Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Applied Art) from 1918 until he retired in 1956. He designed many posters in the cultural field and they all adhered to his two graphic principles of simplicity and legibility. Keller instilled in his students the belief that "every piece of graphic design ought, over and above its immediate purpose, to be an improvement of our visual environment" (Willy Rotzler, Graphis 184, 1976.) His style evolved from a strict approach in the 1920s to a more relaxed one as seen here. It is a simple, yet sophisticated image of a girl reading; created using flat tones of color and no outlining, except for behind her hair. The focal point of the image is the girl's eye, which irresistibly draws the viewer to the poster. To accompany the straightforward design, the poster simply reads, "a good book makes you happy." 50 Years of Swiss Posters n. 17 p. 68.
