Paul Schuitema
Encyclopedia
Geert Paul Hendrikus Schuitema (February 27, 1897 in Groningen - October 25, 1973 in Wassenaar
) was a Dutch
graphic artist
. He also designed furniture
and expositions
and worked as photographer, film director
, painter
and teacher for publicity design at the Royal Academy of Art
in The Hague
.
Schuitema studied at the Academie voor Beeldende Kunsten in Rotterdam
. In the 1920s, he began to work on graphic design,
applying the principles of De Stijl
and constructivism
to commercial advertising. Along with Gerard Kiljan and his famous colleague Piet Zwart
, he followed ideas pioneered in the Soviet Union
by El Lissitzky
and Rodchenko, in Poland
by Henryk Berlewi
and in Germany
by Kurt Schwitters
.
During his employment at the NV Maatschappij Van Berkel Patent scale company in Rotterdam, Schuitema gained recognition for his original designs of stationery and publicity material, often using only the colors black
, red
and white
and bold sans serif fonts. From 1926 on, he started working with photomontages, becoming one of the pioneers of this technique in the field of industrial design
.
Even though he was a convinced socialist and often designed leftist publications directed at industrial workers, Schuitema also worked for major companies, such as Philips
.
, Schuitema, along with Jan Bouman
, Lou Lichtveld
and Eduard Verschueren, began planning for the post-war art community in the Netherlands. In 1944, the four publish a "Report on Stimulation, Development and Organization of the Film Industry in the Netherlands" (Rapport inzake de stimuleering, ontwikkeling en ordening van het Filmwezen in Nederland).
Following Dolle Dinsdag
(September 5, 1944), he officially joined the resistance forces
, assuming a leadership role in the National Film and Photo Reportage Service. After the end of the war, Schuitema and his three partners founded the Dutch Cooperative for Film Production (Nederlandse Werkgemeenschap voor Filmproductie, NWF) in Haarlem
and gave the impulse for the formation of the Dutch Film Makers Guild (Beroepsvereniging van Nederlandse Cineasten). In each case, membership was restricted to those artists whose conduct during the occupation was irreproachable.
In 1946, Schuitema presented his short film "Les Ponts de la Meuse" at the Cannes Film Festival
.
Wassenaar
Wassenaar is a town in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. A fairly affluent suburb of The Hague, Wassenaar lies 10 km north of that city on the N44 highway near the North Sea coast. It is part of the Haaglanden region...
) was a Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
graphic artist
Graphic design
Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...
. He also designed furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
and expositions
Trade fair
A trade fair is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products, service, study activities of rivals and examine recent market trends and opportunities...
and worked as photographer, film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and teacher for publicity design at the Royal Academy of Art
Royal Academy of Art (The Hague)
The Royal Academy of Art, The Hague is an art academy in the Netherlands. It is the oldest art academy in Europe. Known in Dutch as "Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haag" it was founded on 29 September 1682 when its predecessor, the Haagsche Teekenakademie was dissolved.- External...
in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
.
Industrial Design
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. In the 1920s, he began to work on graphic design,
applying the principles of De Stijl
De Stijl
De Stijl , propagating the group's theories. Next to van Doesburg, the group's principal members were the painters Piet Mondrian , Vilmos Huszár , and Bart van der Leck , and the architects Gerrit Rietveld , Robert van 't Hoff , and J.J.P. Oud...
and constructivism
Constructivism (art)
Constructivism was an artistic and architectural philosophy that originated in Russia beginning in 1919, which was a rejection of the idea of autonomous art. The movement was in favour of art as a practice for social purposes. Constructivism had a great effect on modern art movements of the 20th...
to commercial advertising. Along with Gerard Kiljan and his famous colleague Piet Zwart
Piet Zwart
Piet Zwart was a Dutch photographer, typographer, and industrial designer.- Examples of His Artwork :He started his career as an architect and worked for Jan Wils and Berlage....
, he followed ideas pioneered in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
by El Lissitzky
El Lissitzky
, better known as El Lissitzky , was a Russian artist, designer, photographer, typographer, polemicist and architect. He was an important figure of the Russian avant garde, helping develop suprematism with his mentor, Kazimir Malevich, and designing numerous exhibition displays and propaganda works...
and Rodchenko, in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
by Henryk Berlewi
Henryk Berlewi
Henryk Berlewi was a Polish painter.- External links :*...
and in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
by Kurt Schwitters
Kurt Schwitters
Kurt Hermann Eduard Karl Julius Schwitters was a German painter who was born in Hanover, Germany. Schwitters worked in several genres and media, including Dada, Constructivism, Surrealism, poetry, sound, painting, sculpture, graphic design, typography and what came to be known as...
.
During his employment at the NV Maatschappij Van Berkel Patent scale company in Rotterdam, Schuitema gained recognition for his original designs of stationery and publicity material, often using only the colors black
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
, red
Red
Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...
and white
White
White is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light that stimulates all three types of color sensitive cone cells in the human eye in nearly equal amounts and with high brightness compared to the surroundings. A white visual stimulation will be void of hue and grayness.White light can be...
and bold sans serif fonts. From 1926 on, he started working with photomontages, becoming one of the pioneers of this technique in the field of industrial design
Industrial design
Industrial design is the use of a combination of applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, and usability of a product, but it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and production...
.
Even though he was a convinced socialist and often designed leftist publications directed at industrial workers, Schuitema also worked for major companies, such as Philips
Philips
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. , more commonly known as Philips, is a multinational Dutch electronics company....
.
Post-war Filmmaker
During the final years of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Schuitema, along with Jan Bouman
Jan Bouman
Jan Bouman was a Dutch architect, mainly notable for his work as designer and general contractor on the Dutch Quarter in Potsdam. He designed its canals and squares along with Potsdam's Berlin Gate and town hall, the latter influenced by the Royal Palace of Amsterdam....
, Lou Lichtveld
Lou Lichtveld
Lodewijk 'Lou' Lichtveld was a Surinamese politician, playwright, and poet who wrote under the pseudonym "Albert Helman" in the Netherlands....
and Eduard Verschueren, began planning for the post-war art community in the Netherlands. In 1944, the four publish a "Report on Stimulation, Development and Organization of the Film Industry in the Netherlands" (Rapport inzake de stimuleering, ontwikkeling en ordening van het Filmwezen in Nederland).
Following Dolle Dinsdag
Dolle Dinsdag
Dolle Dinsdag is a Dutch name for Tuesday 5 September 1944. On this day many rumours were spreading in the occupied Netherlands that the liberation by Allied forces was at hand...
(September 5, 1944), he officially joined the resistance forces
Dutch resistance
Dutch resistance to the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands during World War II can be mainly characterized by its prominent non-violence, summitting in over 300,000 people in hiding in the autumn of 1944, tended to by some 60,000 to 200,000 illegal landlords and caretakers and tolerated knowingly...
, assuming a leadership role in the National Film and Photo Reportage Service. After the end of the war, Schuitema and his three partners founded the Dutch Cooperative for Film Production (Nederlandse Werkgemeenschap voor Filmproductie, NWF) in Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
and gave the impulse for the formation of the Dutch Film Makers Guild (Beroepsvereniging van Nederlandse Cineasten). In each case, membership was restricted to those artists whose conduct during the occupation was irreproachable.
In 1946, Schuitema presented his short film "Les Ponts de la Meuse" at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
.