Typobiography

Typobiography

Idea book serie
by Gail Anderson & Steven Heller

Typobiography looks back over the long and prolific career of the Swiss designer and typographer. Bringing together several texts by Jost Hochuli himself, contributions by well-known figures (including a preface by John Morgan and an interview with Robin Kinross) and a corpus of previously unpublished archival images, this monograph aims to raise interest in book design, and especially the inspirations and personalities that marked out the designer’s career. The book is a visual monograph, which develops in several thematic sections the questions that have guided Jost Hochuli’s practice over his sixty-year career, and in particular his conception of design as an essential factor in the legibility of a text and the transmission of knowledge. Each part is abundantly illustrated with works specifically digitized and displayed in a layout designed by Jost Hochuli himself, to create a reference work on the designer’s work. The designer has just celebrated his 90th birthday in 2023, yet no monograph of his work has been published since Printed Matter, Mainly Books in 2002. This book will provide a much-needed update on the last twenty years of Jost Hochuli’s career, as well as on the renewed interest in his work, particularly as an author, among younger generations.

Table of content

- Forewords by John Morgan

- Typobiography by Jost Hochuli

- Saint-Gall, interview between Robin Kinross & Roland Früh

- and two texts by Jost Hochuli on binding and the back of books

- Biographic datas

- Bibliography

We have two particularly difficult tasks ahead of us. The first is to offer a monograph without being over-emphatic and glamorous, nor in the cold distribution of factual figures. The second is to address the identity of a Swiss graphic designer.

Typobiography is a mirror title, aptly reflecting the passion of its author, Jost Hochuli. The man is discreet, yet he's one of the Swiss authors whose calm, composed words are heard around the world. We know him through The detail in Typography, the bible of microtypography, but he's also behind a few other equally relevant works in different spheres.

A mirror too, since his profession is more about organizing text than seeking style or expression. The man sees himself more as a craftsman at the service of content, than one seeking to convey a philosophy or message.

His typography is mainly revealed in the pages of books, more than on posters or identities. A lover of these types, he has also ventured into type design, resulting in Allegra, a family of 9 weights in 2 styles that he exploits precisely in the pages of his monograph.

Hochuli is one of the contemporary masters of the book, perhaps alongside Irma Boom, in a relatively distant style. Yet he admits that his publishing output is limited compared to that of his peers. His modest-looking books, with their simple materials and often small print runs, demonstrate the high quality of his work as much as the accuracy of his positioning.

Indeed, when producing graphic design in Switzerland between 1960 and 2020, we question our identity. Hochuli is not interested in style, Swiss style like others. Modernist or traditionalist, these two camps are reminiscent of the post-World War II quarrel between moderns and classics, when Max Bill and Jan Tschichold wrote articles in response to each other. If to choose is to renounce, Hochuli takes a step to the side. When you're asked to choose sides, you're entering a war. But peace must win. In this, Hochuli shows his wisdom, taking what is good from both poles to offer a nuanced and delightful creation, whose subtlety is enough to annoy the most dogmatic of both camps.

His editorial work is therefore a skilful blend of flexible grids, a fine exploitation of gaps and hierarchization of texts. Neither modernist nor classicist, Hochuli is neither lukewarm nor bland. He's subtle, and it's not easy to date his work, so much so that his balance rests on details that are out of fashion. As a good classic, he pays attention to paper quality, printing economy and the quality of fabric and bindings. As a good modernist, he rhythms his layouts and modulates his limited effects to sublimate the content.

Also the book's designer, Hochuli's vision of design is reflected in the sobriety of this book. More than 200 illustrations dress the text with strength and softness. The text of this monograph also adds a special color. Following private exchanges with friends, Hochuli used this draft as the basis for his autobiography. The man writes down the traces of his life with economy and care. His professional apprenticeship, like his family life, is sketched lightly, without eulogy. An interview between Kinross & Früh brings a warm distance to the autobiography. Finally, two short texts by Hochuli punctuate the final pages, like snippets of little that say a lot. He's a man of few who shows that what's necessary is already a luxury.

Typobiography, the works of 60 years

Jost Hochuli (text & design)

Published
in English (ISBN 9782494983052)
& French (ISBN 978-2-490077-94-6
by B42 (B42-205)

December 2023

200 pages

185 x 256 mm

Also available in Italian (Ronzani Editore).