In 1949 Max Bill organized an exhibition of modern design called “die gute form” on behalf of the swiss werkbund (swb). in the years 1952-1968 the label “die gute form” was used by the swiss werkbund to promote “good design”. This is the original exhibition catalogue of a 1954 exhibition in zürich and winterthur
First edition attractive copy of FORM – Eine Bilanz uber die Formentwicklung um die Mitte des XX. Jahrhunderts / A Balance Sheet of Mid-Twentieth-Century Trends in Design / Un Bilan de l’Evolution de la Forme au Milieu du XXe Siecle. 168 pp. Illustrated. Text in German, English and French
Black Mountain: An Interdisciplinary Experiment, 1933 – 1957, on Anni & Josef Albers, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, R. Buckminster Fuller, Charles Olson a.m.o. Spector Books, 2019. 464 pages, with black-and-white reproductions throughout. New copy.
This publication documents Bill’s initiative in reproductions of the original display panels and layout plans for the venues visited by the exhibition, and places Die gute Form in a theoretical context that considers its reception and impact within the history of design. The international touring exhibition Die gute Form was conceived by Max Bill on behalf of the Swiss Werkbund and was shown for the first time in 1949 at the Basel Mustermesse trade fair. The exhibition consisted of 80 display panels, designed by Bill presenting a selection of consumer goods from all over the world chosen by Bill as examples of good design