Presenting

Max Miedinger Jordan N Anderson

Max Miedinger

Brief History

❖ Born in Zürich 1910 - 1980.!❖ Age 16 - longed to be a painter.!❖ “First learn a proper trade.”!❖ 1926 - apprenticeship as a type setter !❖ “I want to be a designer, not spend the

rest of my life fiddling with columns of type in galleys.”!

❖ Zurich School of Arts and Crafts.!❖ Night classes - Kunstge Werbeschule

Career Timeline❖ 1936 - 1946 Typographer in the Globus department chain - Zürich.!❖ 1947 - 1956 Customer counselor/typeface sales representative for

the Haas’sche Schriftgießerei - Münchenstein.!❖ 1956 - 1957 Became a freelance graphic artist with a fair amount of

success - Zürich.!❖ 1957 Eduard Hoffmann being impressed, approached Miedinger

to discuss his “secret project”, which would bring the Haas foundry new commercial success.!

❖ 1957 - 1961 Co-Designed ‘Neue Hass Grotesk’ later got renamed Helvetica.

Eduard Hoffmann

Brief History

❖ Born in Zürich May 26, 1892.!❖ Studied technology and engineering -

Zürich, Berlin, and Munich.!❖ 25 years old - took position under director

his uncle Max Krayer at Hass’sche Schriftgiesserei - Münchenstein, Switzerland.!

❖ 1937 became co-manager of the company!❖ 1944 became sole manager after uncle died. !❖ 1950 Hoffmann decides to make a new Sans

Serif in the Swiss market to compete with European countries.

Helvetica

Quick Look

❖ Original designer Günter Gerhard Lange 1921-2008 ‘Akzidenz Grotesk’!

❖ In a reaction to swiss movement ‘Miedinger and Hoffmenn recreated as Neue Hass Grotesk!

❖ The Hass type foundry was majority owned by D. Stempel AG. - Liontype.!

❖ Helvetia - latin for Switzerland, Helvetica - The Swiss Typeface!

❖ Became face of Swiss.

–David Carson

“If you have no intuitive sense of design, then call yourself an information architect and only use

Helvetica.”

–Steff Geissbuhler

“I have never designed a logotype without first trying it in Helvetica. It is still the most versatile,

classic and readable of all typefaces.”

–Hamish Muir

“We hate to like Helvetica.”

Max Miedinger

The Typographer

❖ Miedinger !❖ Miedinger Bold!❖ Monospace 821!❖ Neue Haas Grotesk Display!❖ Neue Haas Grotesk Display Black !❖ Neue Haas Grotesk Display Extra Thin!❖ Neue Haas Grotesk Text!❖ Neue Haas Grotesk Text Bold !❖ Swiss 721!❖ Swiss 921!

–Nick Carson

“It's the eternal question for graphic designers the world over: Something like Helvetica, but not

Helvetica.”

Max Miedinger

The End Any Questions ?