Helmut Schmid (ed.)

Ruder typography
Ruder philosophy

The celebrated and much sought-after issue of the magazine idea focusing on a towering figure in Swiss graphic design, Emil Ruder, is now in print again. idea is a renowned Japanese magazine on international graphic art and typography. Its 333rd edition lent 226 pages to Emil Ruder, showcasing his work, influence, and legacy in the world of typography and beyond.

It brings together essays, discussions, and appraisals from fellow designers, typographers, and artists – yielding a comprehensive survey of Ruder’s accomplishments. It engages with the designer’s many years of work and teaching in Basel, his thirty years as publisher of the famous Typografische Monatsblätter as well as his posters, fonts, and philosophy.

The extraordinary and comprehensive presentation of the life and works of Swiss typographic legend Emil Ruder sold out shortly after coming off the press. Initially published in 2009 the issue is now available in its original version complemented by commentaries from Michael Renner and Lars Müller.

The celebrated and much sought-after issue of the magazine idea focusing on a towering figure in Swiss graphic design, Emil Ruder, is now in print again. idea is a renowned Japanese magazine on international graphic art and typography. Its 333rd edition lent 226 pages to Emil Ruder, showcasing his work, influence, and legacy in the world of typography and beyond.

It brings together essays, discussions, and appraisals from fellow designers, typographers, and artists – yielding a comprehensive survey of Ruder’s accomplishments. It engages with the designer’s many years of work and teaching in Basel, his thirty years as publisher of the famous Typografische Monatsblätter as well as his posters, fonts, and philosophy.

The extraordinary and comprehensive presentation of the life and works of Swiss typographic legend Emil Ruder sold out shortly after coming off the press. Initially published in 2009 the issue is now available in its original version complemented by commentaries from Michael Renner and Lars Müller.

Edited by Helmut Schmid, in collaboration with the Basel School of Design

Design: Helmut Schmid, Nicole Schmid

23 × 30 cm, 9 × 11 ¾ in

226 pages, 310 illustrations

hardback

2017, 978-3-03778-541-6, English
Japanese
CHF 44.00 CHF 55.00

Emil Ruder

Emil Ruder (1914–1970) was a Swiss typographer, teacher and author. Having finished his apprenticeship as a typesetter in Zurich in 1933, Ruder spent a year in Paris before attending the Schule für Gestaltung Zürich where he studied type composition, letterpress printing, lettering, and book-desig. He was appointed full-time teacher of typography at the Schule für Gestaltung Basel in 1942 and five years later became the school's head of the Apprentices in Applied Arts department. Ruder initiated the specialized class for letterpress printing and became a very influential and prominent educator. He was head of the Basel group of the SWB (Schweizerischer Werkbund) from 1948 onwards and design consultant to the Swiss Post Office's stamps department from 1961. He was co-founder of the International Center for the Typographic Arts (ICTA) in New York in 1962, and director of the Schule für Gestaltung Basel from 1965. In 1968, Ruder initiated the international Advanced Program for Graphic Design, together with Armin Hofmann.

Helmut Schmid

Helmut Schmid (1942–2018), a graphic and type designer, author and teacher was one of the most renowned typographers of the 20th century. Born in Ferlach, Austria, as a German citizen, he was trained as a typesetter at Burger-Druck in Weil am Rhein, Germany. From 1960–62, Schmid attended typography classes at the Schule für Gestaltung Basel. After a brief stint at Ernst Roch in Montreal, Ruder went to Vancouver before moving to Osaka in June 1966 to work for Nippon International Agency. In 1971, he returned to Europe and worked at ARE agency designing publicity material for BPA (Press Office of the German Government), for the German Social Democratic Party and the German chancellors Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt. In 1977, Ruder returned to Japan to work at NIA, designing for Otsuka Pharmaceuticals. Schmid has written numerous essays on typography for international magazines including Typografische Monatsblätter, Idea, baseline, Grafisk Revy, and Novum.