typographer book
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Design Book comparing and contrasting type designers Wim Crouwel and Buro Destruct.TRANSCRIPT
swissdesignan endless scope of influence with many destinations
from Wim Crouwelto Buro Destruct
Wim Crouwel
burodestruct
Th r o u g h o u t t h e m o d e r n
h i s t o r y o f t y p o g r a p h y ,
d e s i g n e r a f t e r d e s i g n e r
h a s c i t e d S w i s s d e s i g n a s a p r i -
mary inf luence. What’s interest ing
a r e t h e m a n y d i f f e r e n t p a t h s a
d e s i g n e r m a y t a k e w i t h S w i s s
d e s i g n a s t h e i r f o u n d a t i o n .
Some may take a dogmatic approach, insisting on following every rule
of Swiss design. These include strict adherence to a well defined grid,
plenty of white space, minimalism, and an allegiance to certain sans serif
typefaces. Some may follow the basic principles, such as fine craft skills,
attention to detail, precise organization, and intense technical training,
yet branch out in their own design work. They may find new ways to break
the grid, add contemporary elements, or incorporate quirkier typefaces.
Others may fall somewhere in between. A look at two very different type
designers from different eras can help us explore this idea more in depth.
A good comparison would be between Dutchman Wim Crouwel and Swiss
based type collective Buro Destruct.
Wim Crouwel is a Dutch designer
born in the city of Groningen, Neth-
erlands in 1928 (Middendorp,
117). He started as a fine artist
and even left art school to become
an expressionist painter (Polano,
Bottin). However, all this changed
when in 1952 Crowell designed
his first poster. In designing this
poster, he discovered a passion for
organizing information, especially
in an aesthetic context. This led him
to explore the work of the Bauhaus
and Swiss-inspired International
Style. The Bauhaus was a school
of art, architecture, and design in
Germany between 1919 and 1933
(Middendorp,). They didn’t differ-
entiate between fine and applied
arts, and for that reason insisted
that all students be extremely adept
at hand crafts. This was a momen-
tous idealogical shift and one that
would change the face of design,
and the way future designers
would approach their work.
An example of a more contemporary type foundry and
design studio worshiping at the altar of Swiss Design
is Buro Destruct, made up of Marc Brunner, Heinz
Rever, Heinz Widmer, and Lorenz Gianfreda. Former
member Fidel Berger now runs the “Buro Discount”
gallery and store in Zurich (Buro Destruct, Web). Buro
Destruct has a more significant cultural tie, as they
originated and are still based in Switzerland. In the
foreword of their book Buro Destruct II, they speak of
how growing up and studying in Switzerland informed
their work. They talk about how “Swiss products
are still associated with the image of precise, prac-
tical and reliable craft”. They describe the virtues
of Swiss people as “orderliness, thoroughness, and
cleanliness”. These words fit right in with the histor-
ical Swiss Design aesthetic. Buro Destruct also make
reference to their training in a time before computers
and software in which they had to develop strong hand
skills. “It was the old school technique of Chinese ink,
the brush, the ruler and the ruling pen, which made
designing fonts a real pain” (Buro Destruct, Print).
j
jj
While Crouwel pledged his allegiance to the Interna-
tional Style, the work he was to create would reveal
numerous contradictions. Like the founders of the
International Style and the De Stijl artists who in-
fluenced them, Crouwel had a strong interest in the
machine. Swiss born Purist Le Corbusier is quoted
as saying “A house is a machine for living in” (Arna-
son, Mansfield, 260) which became the revolution-
ary calling card for a new way of thinking. Crouwel
would praise the virtues of the
machine saying things like “we
need the machine since we have
no time” (Middendorp, 124). At
other times, Crouwel lamented its
rise to prominence: “The machine
cannot replace the precision of the
human eye and human feeling”.
It is precisely these contradic-
tions that would inform Crouwel’s
creative output. Whether he was
aware of it or not, it is clear that
Crouwel was always searching for
the perfect balance between the
emotional and the rational.
“they called me
Mr. Gridnik”
“we feel deeply related to the people of the
forests and the fairies of the
meadows”
bWhile Crouwel was working at a time when new machines were just begin-
ning to point the world of typography towards the world we know in the
21st century, Buro Destruct has had the advantage of contemporary soft-
ware. While both Crouwel and Buro Destruct appreciate their hands on
training, Buro Destruct has a much less conflicted view of the computer
and their place in the digital age. They come across as deeply appreciative
of the fact that they are working in an era when one can type their own
fonts on a keyboard.
in o u r o p i n i o n , i t i s a m i s -
c o n c e p t i o n t h a t m a c h i n e s
r e s t r i c t o n e ’ s f r e e d o m t o
c r e a t e . W e b e l i e v e t h a t w o r k i n g
w i t h m a c h i n e i s l i b e r a t i n g . N o t
o n l y b e c a u s e y o u ’ r e f a s t e r t h a t
w a y , b u t a l s o b e c a u s e w o r k i n g
w i t h c o m p u t e r s – a s o p p o s e d t o
p e n a n d p a p e r – m a k e s i t e a s i e r t o
break the ru les of design. Working
b e y o n d t h e r u l e s o n l y m a k e s t h e
r u l e s m o r e v i s i b l e . ”
b Of course, if Crouwel wanted to
create an original typeface, he
didn’t have the advantages we have
today. In 1957, Crouwel began hand
drawing his own letterforms. Based
on a strict grid, they were made up
of basic geometric shapes arranged
to form each letter. While still based
on his beloved grid, even these ear-
ly experiments revealed a quirkiness
that went far beyond anything seen
in Swiss Design. In 1963, Crouwel
designed type for an exhibition for
the painter Edgar Fernhout. Again,
the type was based on a strict grid
but Crouwel decided to break the
grid and cut off each letter at an
angle to mimic Fernhout’s painting
style (Middendorp, 119).
KBuro Destruct also employs geo-
metric shapes and a strong grid
in many of their typefaces but
takes their aesthetic in a variety
of different directions. Again, the
technology of today makes exper-
imentation an easier endeavor.
Since 1995, Buro Destruct has
been creating anywhere up to
sixteen typefaces a year. Many of
them look like direct descendents
of Wim Crouwel’s type designs,
while many others have a much
more specific vernacular.
Crouwel’s audience was primarily other typographers
and design critics, while Buro Destruct speaks to a
myriad of youth subcultures. In Buro Destruct’s type
designs one can see the influence of punk rock, skate-
boarding, snowboarding, grunge, metal, goth, and
nearly any other prominent youth movement there is.
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
KDuring the first years of his design
firm Total Design, Crouwel and his
colleagues stuck to strict design
principles, often setting type in
Helvetica capitals and incorpo-
rating simple geometric shapes
such as circles and triangles. Soon
however, as this method grew in
popularity among other firms, Total
Design had to branch out into more
expressive, playful areas to sep-
arate themselves from the crowd
and make their clients more visible
(Middendorp, 119).
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz1234567890Wim Crouwel’s
New Alphabet
Buro Destruct’s
Fimo
ABCDEFGHIKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
Possibly Crouwel’s oddest and most controversial type experiment came in
1967. A major transition in type technology had occurred with the advent
of phototypesetting. Crouwel was extremely discouraged with attempts to
convert classic typefaces for this new technology. As an experiment de-
signed to open up conversation about this problem, Crouwel designed Neu
Alphabet. The idea was to reduce the letterform to only its most essential
elements. Crouwel believed he was creating a typeface deeply rooted in
the history of typography: a clean, uncluttered, hand-drawn letterform
for a new era. What Crouwel fails to mention is the ground-breaking
result which he insists was not his intention. “I simply wanted to make
a consistent alphabet based on
that grid of squares.” It’s difficult
to make sense of this statement
when viewing Neu Alphabet. To
the average viewer, Neu Alphabet
comes across as bizarre, experi-
mental, and undeniably futuristic.
Crouwel left no distinction be-
tween uppercase and lowercase
letters. Many of the forms are so
minimal that they are unreadable.
Many critics were unkind saying
that Crouwel’s experiments were
unrealistic and had gone too far.
(Middendorp, 120). If anything,
Neu Alphabet is a prime example
of Crouwel’s blissful ignorance
of his own contributions or his
insistence on down-playing his
experimental nature. One gets
the sense that Crouwel was
working under the belief that all
of his work still fell under a strict
Swiss inspired design sensibility.G
GAfter Neu Alphabet, Crouwel’s experimental nature would only grow
stronger. A poster he created for the Fodor Museum for instance
resulted in an incredible merging of Modernist typefaces with a futur-
istic, computer based aesthetic. The letterforms themselves are based
on standard Modern type but made solely with rectangular forms. Each
rectangle has slightly curved corners giving it an even more intriguing
look. The real experimental nature came when Crouwel laid this type on
top of a pattern of pink dots on an orange background. The result was a
completely unique and somewhat
decorative letterform. The type-
face Stedelijk also came out of this
experimental time, looking like a
more legible Neu Alphabet.
While the majority of Buro De-
struct’s typefaces use strong geo-
metric design, a certain number of
them look like direct homages to Wim
Crouwel. Lo-Fi and Console creat-
ed in 1997 look like descendents of
Crouwel’s Fodor or Stedelijk. The
following year they made Stereotype
and Console Remix which also owed
a debt to Fodor and Stedelijk.
fBuro Destruct’s Cash from 2001 bears a strong re-
semblance to Architype Ingenieur, a newer typeface
Crouwel created based on his exhibition work from the
1960s and 70s. Buro Destruct’s interest in these forms
continue to reveal themselves throughout the years. For
instance the typefaces Designer and Spinner from 2004
show an interest in creating hybrids out of Crouwel’s
work and the cultural vernacular of today.
In weighing the evidence, the
similarities between Wim Crouwel
and Buro Destruct far outnumber
the differences. On the surface,
they seem incredibly different. Wim
Crouwel continues to cite the grid,
structure, and architecture as his
major influences. He didn’t see it
coming when pop culture eventu-
ally embraced his work and start-
ed using Neu Alphabet in a hip,
contemporary manner. “Suddenly
it appeared in pop magazines like
Raygun and blah, blah, blah”(Hel-
vetica). To those of us living in the
contemporary world, Neu Alphabet
seems like an obvious choice for the
avant garde of music or any other
arts for that matter.
fBuro Destruct on the other hand, know that they
reside firmly in contemporary culture. They cite their
Swiss roots, but are quick to diverge into bizarre ram-
blings about the nature of their work.
“ . . . w e f e e l d e e p l y r e l a t e d t o t h e
p e o p l e o f t h e f o r e s t s a n d t h e
f a i r i e s o f t h e m e a d o w s . F r o m f a r
a w a y o n e c a n s e e t h e l i g h t s a n d
h e a r t h e s o u n d s . T h e y ’ r e l i k e a
d r u m r o l l i n a t w o q u a r t e r b e a t o r
p o s s i b l y a l i t t l e m o r e . ” ( B u r o D e -
s t r u c t , P r i n t ) .
r
Buro Destruct’s
Equipment
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
abcdefghijk lmnopqrstuvwxyz
1234567890
abcdefghijk lmnopqrstuvwxyz
1234567890Wim Crouwel’s
Fodor
tBuro Destruct makes it perfectly
clear that they are aligned with cur-
rent youth culture. Aside from fine
art and design influences, they also
reference “pop groups like Kraft-
werk, KLF, or the Sex Pistols” (Buro
Destruct, Print). However, when you
look past what they say, who they
reference, and simply look at the
work—the typography of Crouwel
and Buro Destruct looks surprisingly
similar. It is clean, sharp, and highly
structural. Much of it emphasizes 90
and 45 degree angles. The type of
both is almost always fairly minimal
and strongly defined by the grid. It
is in this sense that a love for Swiss
design shines through.
Swiss design still has an incredible
impact today. In a world becoming
increasingly chaotic by the vast
number of media outlets, design
studios, and type foundries made
possible by 21st century technol-
ogy, people still want order. They
want neatness and cleanliness.
Swiss design gives us that. Whether
it’s through the work of Wim Crou-
wel, Buro Destruct, or nearly every
other type designer working today,
Swiss design has solidified it’s place
in design history and contemporary
design practice. Far from being
just a movement in history, it is
here now, and it has a guaranteed
place in our future. t
D e s i g n e rDavid Hodgson
P roj e c tTypographer’s Book Design
C o u rs eTypography III
F a cu l t yFrancheska Guerrero
Co l l e g eCorcoran College of Art and Design
W o r k s C i t e d“BD Biography.” BD Biography. Buro Destruct, 2012.
Web. 04 Nov. 2013.
Destruct, Buro. Buro Destruct II. Ed. R. Klanten. N.p.:
Prestel, 2003. Print.
Helvetica. Dir. Gary Hustwit. Perf. Manfred Shulz, Massimo Vignelli,
Rick Poynor. Veer, Swiss Dots, 2007. DVD.
Middendorp, Jan. “Wim Crouwel and Dutch Calvinism.” Dutch Type.
Rotterdam: OIO, 2004. 117-23. Print.
Polano, Sergio, and Wiliam Bottin. “Wim Crouwel’s Adventures into
the Experimental Worlds.” IDEA Magazine Issues No. 323 July 2007:
n. pag. Web. 2 Nov. 2013. <http://www.idea-mag.com/en/
publication/323.php>.
Lopetz (Buro Destruct). “Introducing Buro Destruct.” Interview by
Hype For Type. Hype for Type. N.p., 9 May 2011. Web. 2 Nov. 2013.
<http://www.hypefortype.com/blog/2011/05/09/
introducing-buro-destruct/>.
T y p ef a c e s
Wim Crouwel
Foundry Gridnik
New Alphabet
Fodor
Stedelijk
Buro Destruct
BD Fimo
BD Chantilly
BD Algebra
BD Outline