Armin Hofmann
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Armin Hofmann | |
|---|---|
 Hofmann at a summer design program at Disentis Monastery in Switzerland (1989) | |
| Born | June 29, 1920 |
| Died | December 18, 2020 (aged 100) |
| Known for | Graphic designer, educator, author |
Armin Hofmann (HonRDI) (29 June 1920[1] – 18 December 2020) was a Swiss graphic designer and design educator, considered one of the most influential figures of Swiss design.[2][3][4][5][6] Through a regular visiting professorship at Yale University School of Art in 1960–80s, Hofmann introduced the Swiss design style to the United States.[2][7]
Armin Hofmann was born June 29, 1920 in Winterthur, Switzerland. After graduating from School of Arts and Crafts in Zurich, he worked as a lithographer in Basel and Bern.[8]
Hofmann began his career in 1947 as a teacher at the Allgemeine Gewerbeschule Basel School of Art and Crafts at the age of twenty-six.[9] Hofmann followed Emil Ruder as head of the graphic design department at the Schule für Gestaltung Basel (Basel School of Design) and was instrumental in developing the graphic design style known as the Swiss Style. His teaching methods were unorthodox and diverse, and set new educational standards that became widely known in design institutions throughout the world.
In addition to his position at Basel School of Design, Hofmann taught workshops in graphic design at Yale University School of Art[7] and the Philadelphia Museum School of Art.[10] His notable students include April Greiman, Wolfgang Weingart,[11] Steff Geissbühler,[12] and Inge Druckrey.
Hofmann retired from teaching at Basel School of Design in 1986[13] and resigned from his position at Yale in 1991[8] in response to the appointment of postmodernist designer Sheila Levrant de Bretteville as the director of the school's graphic design program.[14][15]
He died December 18, 2020[16] at the age of 100 in Lucerne, where he lived with his wife Dorothea Hofmann-Schmid.[16][17]
