Exhibition and Symposium "Practices in Design Education – Hundred Years Kurt Wirth 1917-2017"
Initiated by SGDTR's associate researcher Leslie Kennedy with the curatorial assistance of Moreno Tuttobene, an exhibition (running from November 2 until November 30, 2017) and a symposium (held on November 17, 2017) highlighting the educational and professional activities of the Swiss graphic designer Kurt Wirth (1917–1996), were organized at the FHNW HGK Basel.
Both events represented a reflection on Wirth's contribution to the history of graphic design education and to honour his 100th anniversary. Sandra Bischler, Sarah Klein and Michael Renner, researchers of the SGDTR subproject "principles of education", contributed to the symposium by providing insights into their research and contextualizing Wirth within the design education landscape of Switzerland and abroad.
By contrasting Wirth's educational approach with developing practices in graphic design, as well as, the educational methods of his contemporaries, his legacy becomes relevant to SGDTR's research enquiries. The events provided us with valuable insight into his uncompromising emphasis on drawing as the foundation of all design processes, as well as, his employment of the master-apprentice model of education as the alternative course to a full time program at schools of applied arts.
Along with historical reflections on graphic design education, the symposium included a biographical outline, Wirth's lasting influence on contemporary practice, as well as, more general reflections on the context of Wirth's time as a designer, such as the role of women in graphic design history.
Among the speakers were Stephan Bundi, Sandra Bischler, Sarah Klein, Jenny Leibundgut, Julia Meer, Michael Renner, Moreno Tuttobene, as well as a panel discussion with Simon Wirth.
Links:
https://www.fhnw.ch/de/die-fhnw/hochschulen/hgk/institute/institut-visuelle-kommunikation/exhibition-and-symposium-practices-in-design-education-hundred-years-kurt-wirth-1917-2017/program_symposium_kurt_wirth.pdf
https://www.fhnw.ch/de/die-fhnw/hochschulen/hgk/institute/institut-visuelle-kommunikation/exhibition-and-symposium-practices-in-design-education-hundred-years-kurt-wirth-1917-2017
