Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design

the leaders of the new Weimar government superimposed—is a classic dada
document. Two ongoing sister publications,Die Pliete( 1919 – 1922 ) and Der
Gegner( 1919 – 1922 ), designed by Heartfield with drawings by Grosz, were
the agitational arm of the German communist party, which, like the
members of the dada group and Spartakus Bund, fought against the
emerging right wing, the Nazis.
Heartfield is remembered today for his strident anti-Nazi
photomontages for the Arbeiter Illustierte Zeitung(AIZ), but as art director
for the Malik Verlag he was an innovative jacket and cover designer. His
graphic imprimatur formed the visual personality of the publishing house
and, moreover, was the model for kindred publishers active during the
1920 s.
Under Heartfield’s direction the Malik Verlag was a wellspring of
avant-garde graphic design. They were influenced by Russian and Italian
futurism, yet introduced Germans to typographic experiments that were
later brought to fruition by Russian constructivists, Dutch de Stijl, and
German dadaists.