Lucian Bernhard

Lucian Bernhard: „Stiller“, 1908

A World War I German propaganda poster urging the sale of war bonds in the Plakastil style pioneered by Lucian Bernhard.

A sample of Bernhard Modern.

Lucian Bernhard (March 15, 1883–May 29, 1972) was a German graphic designer, type designer, professor, interior designer, and artist during the first half of the twentieth century. He was born in Stuttgart, Germany, on March 15, 1883, as Emil Kahn to a Jewish family, but changed in 1905 to his more commonly known pseudonym. His first name is often spelled Lucien.

He was influential in helping create the design style known as Plakatstil (Poster Style), which used reductive imagery and flat-color as well as Sachplakat ('object poster') which restricted the image to simply the object being advertised and the brand name. He was also known for his designs for Stiller shoes, Manoli cigarettes, and Priester matches.^[1]

Though he studied briefly at the Akademie in Munich, he was largely self-taught. He moved to Berlin in 1901 where he worked as a poster designer and art director for magazines. In 1920 he became a professor at the Akademie der Künste until 1923, when he emigrated to New York City. In 1928 he opened the Contempora Studio with Rockwell Kent, Paul Poiret, Bruno Paul, and Erich Mendelsohn where he worked as a graphic artist and interior designer. After 1930 he worked primarily as a painter and sculptor until his death on May 29, 1972.^[2]

Lucian Bernhard was the father of the photographer Ruth Bernhard.

Typefaces

• Bernhard Antiqua (1912, Bauer)
• Bernhard Fraktur (1912–22, Bauer)
• Bernhard Privat (1919)
• Bernhard Brush Script (1925, Bauer)
• Bernhard Cursive + Bold (1925, Bauer), also known as Madonna and Neon Cursive, also cast as "Madonna Ronde" by Stephenson Blake
• Lucian series (1925, Bauer), later digitized as Belucian by Font Bureau
  • Lucian + italic also known as Graphic Light
  • Lucian Bold + italic also known as Graphic Bold
• Bernhard Schönschrift (1925–28)
• Bernhard Bold Condensed (1926, Lanston Monotype)
• Bernhard Handschrift (1928, Bauer)
• Bernhard Roman + Italic (Bauer)
• Bernhard Fashion (1929, ATF and Intertype)
• Bernhard Gothic series (ATF)
  • Bernhard Gothic Light (1929)
  • Bernhard Gothic Medium (1929)
  • Bernhard Gothic Light Italic (1930)
  • Bernhard Gothic Heavy (1930)
  • Bernhard Gothic Extra Heavy (1930)
• Lilli (1930, Bauer)
• Negro (1930, Bauer), later digitized as Berlin Sans by Font Bureau
• Bernhard Booklet + Italic (1932, ATF)
• Bernhard Tango (1934, ATF)
  • Bernhard Tango Swash Capitals (1939, ATF), known in Europe as Aigrette
• Bernhard Modern series (ATF)
  • Bernhard Modern Roman (1937)
  • Bernhard Modern Bold (1938)
  • Bernhard Modern Bold Italic (1938)
  • Bernhard Modern Condensed (1938)

Types Inspired by Bernhard

• Berthold Block (1908, Berthold), drawn by Heinz Hoffmann, is widely said to have been inspired by the letter-forms on Bernhard's posters of the time.^[3]
• Concerto Rounded SG (2002, Spiece Graphics), designed by Jim Spiece in 2002, based on a 1920s concert program lettered by Bernhard.^[4]

References

• Rollins, Carl Purlington American Type Designers and Their Work. in Print, V. 4, #1.
• Jaspert, W. Pincus, W. Turner Berry and A.F. Johnson. The Encyclopedia of Type Faces. Blandford Press Lts.: 1953, 1983. ISBN 0-7137-1347-X.
• MacGrew, Mac, "American Metal Typefaces of the Twentieth Century," Oak Knoll Books, New Castle Delaware, 1993, ISBN 0-938768-34-4.
• Friedl, Ott, and Stein, Typography: an Encyclopedic Survey of Type Design and Techniques Throughout History. Black Dog & Levinthal Publishers: 1998. ISBN 1-57912-023-7.

1. ^ "Lucien Bernhard". Schoolnet.Uk. Archived from the original on 2010-03-08. http://www.webcitation.org/5o5YcIoDf. Retrieved 2010-03-09. 
2. ^ Friedl, Ott, and Stein, pp. 124–5.
3. ^ David Consuegra (2004), American type design and designers, Allworth Communications, Inc. ISBN 1581153201, p. 78
4. ^ Concerto Rounded SG page at MyFonts.com [1]

External links

• Long, Christopher ed "Design and reform: The making of the Bauhaus." (Magazine) The Antiques Magazine (2009)
• AIGA Medalist article “Proto-Modernist” by Steven Heller
• Art Directors Club biography and images of work

See also

• List of AIGA medalists

Persondata
Name	Bernhard, Lucian
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1883
Place of birth
Date of death	1972
Place of death