"Alan Kitching and Monotype: Celebrating the centenary of five pioneers of the poster," an upcoming exhibition at the London College of Communication, celebrates the five most memorable poster artists of the last century. We look back on some of their most exceptional works. (This 1941 Auxiliary Territorial Service poster by Abram Games was quickly recalled when the authorities decided it looked too glamorous.)
Courtesy the Estate of Abram Games
Pioneers of poster design: Abram Games —
Games, who served as Britain's official war artist during WWII, was known for his memorable propaganda, bold use of color (as demonstrated in this poster from 1947), and skill with the airbrush. This poster for the Auxiliary Territorial Service, made by Abram Games in 1941, was recalled because authorities again thought it looked too glamorous.
Courtesy the Estate of Abram Games
Pioneers of poster design: Abram Games —
A poster for the British Overseas Airways Corporation, 1950
Courtesy the Estate of Abram Games
Pioneers of poster design: Abram Games —
Games' posters for Guinness (including this 5 million Guinness Daily poster from 1958) were a universal hit with consumers.
Courtesy the Estate of Abram Games
Pioneers of poster design: Abram Games —
Carfree Carefree, 1967
Courtesy the Estate of Abram Games
Pioneers of poster design: Abram Games —
Kitching's tribute to Games includes a number of nods to specific Games posters, most notably the red A, which directly references the designer's ATS poster. "(Games) used to use an airbrush, which gives graduations of very soft color, shades. That was his specialty, so I've tried to suggest that," Kitching explains. "And he did work for Guinness, which is where the big black G comes in."
Courtesy Alan Kitching/David Chambers
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
Tom Eckersley is most well-known for this work with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, and other organizations that raised public awareness about common issues. "He was telling people what to do, but in a very nice, very graphic way," Kitching says.
Kind permission of Dika Eckersley
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
He also made a number of posters for the London College of Printing (now the London College of Communication), where he was an instructor. This one promoting a student exhibition was made in 1961.
Kind permission of Dika Eckersley
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
A poster for the Victoria line of the London Underground, 1968
Kind permission of Dika Eckersley
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
A library poster made for the London College of Printing, 1975
Kind permission of Dika Eckersley
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
An advertisement for London's Imperial War Museum, 1981
Kind permission of Dika Eckersley
Pioneers of poster design: Tom Eckersley —
"Tom used to use flat color and geometric shapes, so that's what I'm trying to do with this. That's why I used this T with the big serif, with big slabs like this," explains Kitching.
Courtesy Alan Kitching/David Chambers
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
Though FHK Henrion was born in Germany, he spent most of his life in England. Like Games and Eckersley, he relied on the creative use of images and minimal text. This 1942 poster for the U.S. Office of War Information's Young American exhibition in London is a prime example.
Kind permission from Marion Wesel-Henrion
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
Henrion specialized in commercial work, like this 1948 poster for the now-defunct British South American Airways, and is considered an early innovator in the field of corporate identity.
Kind permission from Marion Wesel-Henrion
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
This 1961 poster was used to promote the Olivetti Lettera 32 (a typewriter).
Kind permission from Marion Wesel-Henrion
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
For Liberty Exhibition poster, 1981
Kind permission from Marion Wesel-Henrion
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
Henrion was president of Icograda, an organization that celebrates players in the world of communication and design, from 1968 to 1970. He designed this poster for the 12th Icograda Student Seminar in 1986.
Kind permission from Marion Wesel-Henrion
Pioneers of poster design: FHK Henrion —
For Henrion's monogram, Kitching took a more tongue-in-cheeck approach. "Henrion had a French connection: everyone thought he was French, but he wasn't. I was trying to emulate that with the French flag."
Courtesy Alan Kitching/David Chambers
Pioneers of poster design: Paul Rand —
Brooklyn-born Paul Rand, the only non-European being celebrated, was a commercial artist, first and foremost. His bright colors and creative use of type stand out immediately. This poster was created for the Minute Man National Historical in Massachusetts in 1975.
Courtesy the Paul Rand Estate
Pioneers of poster design: Paul Rand —
He worked extensively with IBM, and is responsible for their striped logo, which is still in use today. This Eye, Bee, M poster was designed in 1981.
Courtesy the Paul Rand Estate
Pioneers of poster design: Paul Rand —
Rand also served as an art director at Esquire-Coronet magazines and created covers for Apparel Arts (now GQ). He was inducted into the Art Directors Club hall of fame in 1972, and created this poster for the group in 1988.
Courtesy the Paul Rand Estate
Pioneers of poster design: Paul Rand —
Rand created many posters for the University of California, Los Angeles' summer session catalogs (including this one from 1993), all pro bono.
Courtesy the Paul Rand Estate
Pioneers of poster design: Paul Rand —
"The P is a shadow letter. It looks more like a puzzle, or a playful little thing, which is what Paul used to do in his own work and children's books. He used flat areas of color, geometric shapes, and things like that," Kitching says.
Courtesy Alan Kitching/David Chambers
Pioneers of poster design: Josef Müller-Brockmann —
Josef Müller-Brockmann, who lived and worked in Switzerland, is recognized for his use of clean typefaces, and the fact that he rarely featured images on his posters. His concert posters for the Tonhalle concert hall in Zurich exemplified his tendency to use lines and simple geometric shapes, as well as color contrast to create interest, which Kitching has incorporated into his monogram.
