Otl Aicher Essay draft 1

1. OTL AICHER
“Aicher fights with productive obstinacy, above all for the renewal of Modernism, which he says
has largely exhausted itself in aesthetic visions. He insists that the ordinary working day is still
more important than the “cultural Sunday.” -- Wolfgang Jean Stock (Rathgeb 15)
A champion of the grid system and German Modernism, graphic designer Otl Aicher is
cemented in history as a pioneer in corporate identity in post-war Germany. Throughout his
lifetime, Aicher enriched traditionally-austere Central European design with rigor and freedom,
empowering the grid to breed structured, yet visually active design.
BEGINNINGS
Born and raised in Ulm, the south-western state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany on May 13,
1921, Aicher experienced the devastation of the Second World War first-hand. He had anti-Nazi
views and cofounded Die Weisse Rose (the White Rose) non-violent resistance group before
serving in the German army in 1941 against his beliefs. After several attempts to leave, he
finally deserted the army and hid in the Scholl residence. Upon Germany’s surrender, Aicher
moved back to Ulm to engage in the rebuilding of the city. He organized Thursday Lectures--
gatherings with the intention of stimulating the population--and promoted them with his designed
posters. In the late 1940s, after years of grappling with the decision to become a fine artist and
a brief semester studying sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts Munich, Aicher realized that
“‘the street is more important than the museum’” and was unable to justify creating fine art when
his hometown required practical action for reconstruction. (Rathgeb 23) Aicher had started
creating client work at his own design studio Büro Aicher by 1947, and the following years were
instrumental in Aicher’s exploration and interest in modernism, ultimately defining Aicher’s
design identity.
Aicher’s war-ridden early life was an important catalyst for his transformative influence to
Germany’s post-war image in the coming years. Despite having artistic talent and interest,
Aicher was unable to “reconcile the gap between [fine art], which for him lost its sociological
foundation, and the realities of the world around him,” leading him to adopt a mindset that
challenged pure aesthetics. (Rathgeb 23) This rejection of art, in effect, led Aicher to his lifelong
pursuit of design for political and social change.
COMMITMENT TO EDUCATION
In the continued effort to help revitalize Germany, Otl Aicher, Inge Scholl, and Max Bill founded
Hochschule für Gestaltung Ulm (HfG) or Ulm School of Design in 1953, a progressive design
school intended to train socially-minded designers. This mindset will later be known as the Ulm
Model, grounded in modernist principles, aiming to curb nationalist and militaristic mindsets and
reshape the future of Germany. During his time consulting and teaching at the Ulm School of

2. Design, Aicher emphasized the profile of the designer as a profession, not just as an artist or
architect that “designs”, which was the general opinion on designers in the mid 20th century. His
teachings emphasized objectivity of design methodology, the power of design to serve as the
model of science and technology, and how design should be involved in the decision making
process of industrial production. Some notable projects that were produced from the Ulm School
of Design include the first completely stackable tableware, Braun’s audio equipment, and the
functional yet cost-efficient Ulmer stool. Although the school only existed for 15 years, it has
been known as the most influential design school after the Bauhaus.
Many of Aicher’s influential relationships began at the HfG. Famous designers and architects of
the mid-century such as Tomás Maldonado, Max Bense, Hans Gugelot, Dieter Rams, Josef
Albers, and Gui Bonsiepe taught students at the school and collaborated with Aicher on many of
his notable projects. Aicher established relationships with the iconic Ray and Charles Eames in
the United States, and even more designers internationally. In the industry, Aicher was known
for his intellect and according to British architect Norman Foster, “more than a designer…[but
also] a philosopher… a poet… he was political in the greatest sense.” (Norman Foster sobre Otl
Aicher)
CORPORATE BRANDING
[Lufthansa] The mastermind behind Lufthansa’s current logo was Otl Aicher, when he was
commissioned to overhaul branding for the civil aviation company in 1962. Aicher coined the
signature hue “melon yellow,” (also dubbed “Lufthansa yellow”) which branded the airline similar
to the Coco-Cola’s association with red. Aicher’s work in corporate branding was holistic-- his
collaboration with Lufthansa resulted in significant branding outputs such as signage, stationary,
logos, tickets, tableware, uniforms, and more.
[Metro Bilbao] In collaboration with British architect Norman Foster, Aicher demonstrated his
intellect and design’s power to influence economics and social issues with his work for Metro
Bilbao in 1988. The interdisciplinary “merger of design, urban planning, and architecture”
“complementary study” that articulated the corporate identity (logo, signage, information system)
of the metro system took consideration to handwritten accounts, in addition to other forms of
history, culture, and heraldry-- wholly anticipating the economic, social, and cultural
repercussions of his final design. (Zuaznabar)
[Other notable branding projects] Isny posters, FSB, Balthaup, ZDF, West German Federal
State Bank, Munich Airport, ERCO, Braun
PICTOGRAM
Although the first system of visualization made of internationally intelligible pictograms came
into public appearance in the 1920s known as ‘Isotype’, Aicher was the first to intend to replace

3. verbal and written language-- revolutionizing the way we perceive visual communication as we
know it. Aicher’s designed signage system made their first appearances in the Frankfurt Airport
and Munich Olympics, back when “well-designed” and effective signage was not credited to
designers and were regarded to have little societal influence, as they did not directly contribute
to political and economic systems. Meanwhile, Aicher was working toward the goal of “design
neutrality” that ensured objectivity and understanding that transcended cultural barriers. Behind
this methodology is the design grid, which he used to set small, formal graphic units
“graphemes” and apply preset standards-- avoiding abstraction and instead seeking cogent fit in
a larger system. Aicher recognized the charm of irregularity, but believed “the formal and
technical advantages of standardized elements were more important.” His view on the
pictogram is exemplified in the general visual quality of his work that valued “visual objectivity…
over the designer’s individual style.” (Rathgeb 125)
Aicher’s pictograms from the Olympics gave rise to the DOT pictograms, public signs developed
by the United States Department of Transportation. Utilizing Aicher’s principles and emphasis
on clarity and objectivity, these icons became popular internationally and can be recognized in
all essential locations of everyday life, from no smoking to bathroom signs. Today, Aicher is
known as the “Father of the Geometric Man” with his pioneering work in iconography.
MUNICH OLYMPICS 1972
“As a strictly designed grammar, the system allows free, playful application. This is comparable
to ball games or chess, where fixed elements and an agreed set of rules allow playful freedom.”
– Otl Aicher on his work for the Munich Olympics, 1970
The evident challenge of designing for the Munich Olympics is its historical context. As the
Design Commissioner of the games, Aicher internalized the necessity to completely step away
from the Nazi-exploited 1936 Berlin Games in favor of something joyful and light-hearted that
represented the young new democratic Germany-- a modern utopia free of outside branding.
The visual identity was clearly defined by a set of graphic elements and rules, grounded in a
strong grid framework, while exhibiting playfulness with its “unGerman” bright colors inspired by
the Bavarian landscape. Inspired by the communicative power of symbols, Aicher’s team
developed nearly 180 pictograms for the sporting events, all set through strict orthogonal and
diagonal square grids; they also pioneered the first Olympic mascot, Waldi, a striped
dachshund, and the use of the posterization effect for the promotional posters before Photoshop
existed. The precise visual identity took the form of color-coordinated uniforms, posters,
brochures, maps, tickets, timetables, luggage tags, and many more--managing to convey
warmth and a transformative new look for Germany.
Aicher took his holistic approach of corporate design into all his visual identity projects, including
the 1972 games, documenting his precise conclusive design system with “Guidelines and
Standards for the Visual Design” which marked a turning point in design history. Manuals like
his have since become an indispensable part of the Olympic Games design process.

4. TYPEFACE
“It is not the beautiful book but the daily paper, not beautiful calligraphy but everyday
handwriting that are the testing ground of reading and writing, and thus release the crucial
criteria of evaluation… There is no way to avoid thinking. You will not get very far with typefaces
with an aversion to rationalism.” - Otl Aicher, The World as Design
Following the discovery of the Rotis rural mill house that Aicher remodeled to be his eventual
home and studio until his death, a famous typeface was born. Rotis was designed by Aicher in
1988 for ERCO’s new corporate design, as an attempt to expand on his reliance on Swiss
typefaces like Univers. Aicher sought to connect Grotesque and Roman fonts for “both aesthetic
and political value,” resulting in a “typeface that can be read more easily and more rapidly than
the existing one,” and one that serves to “increase recognizability, legibility, reading speed.”
(Rathgeb 208, Aicher 177) Rotis was developed in serif, semi-serif, and sans serif forms,
simultaneous with his book typographie.
CONCLUSION
A tragic traffic accident took Aicher’s life in 1991, but the designer’s influence continues to
manifest in our daily lives. What initially drew me into his work was how current his Munich
Olympics pictograms seemed, despite them being half-a-century old. The geometric man’s
influence is clearly evident in the signage we see in our daily lives. As I learned more about
Aicher’s life, I was able to understand and ground his post-war designs with a conflict-filled early
life in Germany during World War II. His work exhibits qualities that are systematic, functional,
and easily understood, yet no less human and alive.
Aicher’s work was not only significant historically, but continues to be effective and compelling
long after the war in the 21st century. His grasp on work-life balance and influence on visual
communication as we know it today demonstrate to me that a design is not without a designer.
Otl Aicher’s life, work, and spirit reminds a young designer like me to not lose sight of my unique
life experience when creating work that is in service of my community.

5. WORKS CITED
Aicher, Otl. The World as Design. Ernst & Sohn, A Wiley Brand, 2015.
Rathgeb, Markus. Otl Aicher. Phaidon, 2015.
https://www.mascontext.com/observations/otl-aicher-metro-bilbao-architecture-and-landscape/​
u
nderconsideration.com/speakup/archives/004931.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaPzBkk6Lj4&ab_channel=JeffCoffman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFqt7dU6XDI&ab_channel=MarkHolt
https://www.designworkplan.com/read/rotis-sans
https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-bauhaus-lesser-known-ulm-school-seismic-impact-de
sign
http://www.1972municholympics.co.uk/index.php
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpQw7PkYppw&ab_channel=Designwritings
https://www.fonts.com/font/monotype/rotis-semi-sans/story
https://www.itsnicethat.com/news/otl-aicher-exhibition-graphic-design-070917
https://www.metropolismag.com/cities/the-olympic-feats-of-otl-aicher/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdj5FJmCz_0&ab_channel=CrowdfundingVideos