GERRIT THOMAS RIETVELD (1888-1965) VEREENG VAN ONTHOUDERS ONDER NEDERLANDSCH SPOOR EN TRAMWEG PERSONEEL [TEMPERANCE SOCIETY OF DUTCH RAILWAY PERSONNEL.] Circa 1917. 22 1/2x18 inches, 57x46 cm. Drukkerij Zuidam, Utrecht. Condition B / B+: sharp horizontal fold; discoloration (tape stains?) in margins; reparied tear through top margin into image. Framed. Gerrit Rietveld was an architect and furniture designer whose Red and Blue chair (which he designed in 1918) has become an icon of the De Stijl movement, as well as of 20th Century design. Dedicated to modernity, and establishing an aesthetic that was a complete break from the past, the De Stijl artists embraced the use of the straight-line and bold primary colors. Rietveld's output of graphic design is extremely limited, and this is considered to be the only poster he designed. Furthermore this copy is the only copy known to exist. This image, although clearly designed before his adherence to the new, sharper-edged style, still bespeaks a modern influence that was a departure from the prevailing Amsterdam School of design. Rietveld's handling of the figures is almost statuary in their form and simplicity, and the orderly typography is remarkable for the bold way it is outlined against the background. Overall, the poster exhibits far less ornamentation than works by Richard Roland-Holst or Jacob Jongert from the same period. Rietveld p. 82 (actual piece).
Provenance: Barry Friedman, New York. Sotheby's Amsterdam, February 5, 2008, lot 247.
