Gerd Arntz (1900-1988) was most well known for his collaboration with Otto Neurath, in which they designed a pictorial system used for knowledge and information transfer (Arntz, G. 2010). This system was originally called the Vienna Method but is now referred to as Isotype. Due to such significant work, Gerd Arntz is renowned in the world of visual communication.
Prior to his work with Neurath at the Vienna Museum of Society and Economy, Arntz study at an art acsemdy in the early 1920 to become a drawing teacher. He also belonged to the ‘progressive artist group’ (Arntz, G. 2010) whereby he focused on social and political issues through his art. This attracted the attention of Neurath through an exhibition in Germany. In 1928 Arntz was invited to Vienna to further develop Neurath’s Isoype theory, where he was later assigned as a design director. The role was ideal for Arntz as he was able to practise his political beliefs in a way that would actively inform. In 1930, ‘Gesellschaft und Wirtschaft’ was published and the collection of 100 visual statistics was a major success (Arntz, G. 2010). After the Nazi take over in 1934, Arntz emigrated to the Netherlands and continued working on Isotype, where he would soon work for the Dutch Foundation of Statistics. In the Netherlands he also created a series of prints regarding the threat of Nazism, evidently showcasing his social and political views.
Arntz developed the Isotype visual dictionary, consisting of over 4000 symbols, allowing society to follow a simplistic and informative system. With an artistic career of 50 years and a lifetime of societal and political ideologies, Arntz was in many ways was an influential activist as well as a successful contributor to visual communication.
By Chelsea Buswell.
References:
gerd arntz. (2010). Available at: https://popupdynamics.wordpress.com/tag/gerd-arntz/ Accessed: 22 August 2018.
Arntz, G. (2010) Gerd Arntz. 010 Publishers.
FTN-Blog. (2017) Gerd Arntz (1900-1988). Available at: https://ftn-blog.com/2017/04/29/gerd-arntz-1900-1988/ Accessed: 22 August 2018.
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