Erik Nitsche

Erik Nitsche (September 7, 1908 - November 14, 1998) was a pioneer in the design of books, annual reports, and other printed material that relied on meticulous attention to the details of page composition, the elegance of simple type presentation, and the juxtaposition of elements on a page. His hallmarks were impeccably clear design, brilliant colors, smart typography, and an adherence to particular geometric foundations.

Erik Nitsche was born and studied in Lausanne, Switzerland, and moved to the United States at the age of 26, where he had a successful career as graphic designer and art director. After 1960's he worked mainly on children's books.

Nitsche is best known for his historic relationship with the engineering company General Dynamics. He designed a breakthrough series of posters, in addition to designing their corporate image, annual reports, and advertising. He was hired as art director for General Dynamics and savored designing technical data for such things as hydraulic systems and cross-sections of airplanes.

See also

The four posters for Atoms for Peace are also his work.

External links

* [http://www.typotheque.com/articles/erik_nitsche:_the_reluctant_modernist/ The Reluctant Modernist by Steven Heller]
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/eriknitsche Flickr page dedicated to Nitsche's work]
* [http://www.adcglobal.org/archive/hof/1996/?id=324 Art Directors Club biography, portrait and images of work]