alle Plakate:
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

Exhibition catalogue
Lucian Bernhard. Werbung und Design im Aufbruch des 20. Jahrhunderts – 2nd changed edition. – Stuttgart: Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa), 2004. – 176 pp.; German with an insert in English – Order Catalogue

In the 21th century, advertising has become a firmly established part of our everyday lives. It is all around us, influences our needs and desires and brings colour into our lives. It is a thing we take for granted, yet at the beginning of the 20th century, it was a completely new thought.

LUCIAN BERNHARD is one of those who pioneered modern advertising language corresponding to the economic upswing and the accompanying accelerated rhythm of life. As the inventor of the so-called "Sachplakat" – functional poster – he has decidedly shaped the history of commercial advertising. He designed the lettering of brand and corporate names for large firms like Bosch, Kaffee HAG or Pelikan, and today their modern versions still refer to those Bernhard created.

His designs may still be topical and in people's minds, yet he as the designer is largely unknown. This is why the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen e.V. is dedicating a comprehensive monographic retrospective to Lucian Bernhard. It includes all of his fields of activity: poster design, typography, book and magazine design.

Lucian Bernhard
Artists' Database (in German)