See more objects with the tag men, communication, graphic design, advertising, scale, theater, theater poster, theatrical, stools, mask, odalisque, expression, suits, performance, laughter, promotional poster, performer.

Object Timeline

-0001

1960

  • Work on this object began.

1997

  • We acquired this object.

2015

2019

2024

  • You found it!

Poster, 1960/61 Stadttheater Basel [Poster for the 1960-61 Season of the City Theater, Basel]

This is a Poster. It was designed by Armin Hofmann and collected by Dan Friedman and made for (as the client) Stadttheater, Basel. It is dated 1960 and we acquired it in 1997. Its medium is offset lithograph on white wove paper. It is a part of the Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design department.

The enormous letter T makes the laughing figure seem small, and it makes us feel small, too. Bleeding beyond the frame, the T is too big to contain. Hofmann uses black and white to avoid the "trivialization of color" seen in everyday commercial advertising. By narrowing his language to type, shape, and image, he confronts direct processes of perception.

This object was donated by Ken Friedman. It is credited Gift of Ken Friedman.

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  • pen and black ink, brush and gray wash, watercolor, black chalk on white laid....
  • Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council.
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Its dimensions are

H x W: 128.6 × 90.3 cm (50 5/8 × 35 9/16 in.)

It is inscribed

Along right edge: Entwurf: Armin Hofmann Photo: erkle Druck: Wassermann A.G. Basel

Cite this object as

Poster, 1960/61 Stadttheater Basel [Poster for the 1960-61 Season of the City Theater, Basel]; Designed by Armin Hofmann (Swiss, b.1920); Collected by Dan Friedman (American, 1945–1995); Client: Stadttheater, Basel; Switzerland; offset lithograph on white wove paper; H x W: 128.6 × 90.3 cm (50 5/8 × 35 9/16 in.); Gift of Ken Friedman; 1997-19-148

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition How Posters Work.

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If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18673315/ |title=Poster, 1960/61 Stadttheater Basel [Poster for the 1960-61 Season of the City Theater, Basel] |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=26 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>