De Reclame was Holland’s leading advertising-design journal in the 1920s and early ’30s. I include it in my book on design magazines. Its editors understood the design mandates of the era. It was the Mechanical Age when designers were addressing the modern transformations triggered by the earlier industrial age—a period when aesthetics and function were determined as co-existing in one form.
This 1926 issue was devoted to the visual evocation of the period, from the literal representation of the machine to its symbolic ones, influenced by the Bauhaus and Russian Constructivism. The images here are advertisements that express the zeitgeist and serve as markers of an era. They are also simply pleasurable to behold.
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About Steven HellerSteven Heller is the co-chair of the SVA MFA Designer /Designer as Author + Entrepreneur program, writes frequently for Wired and Design Observer. He is also the author of over 170 books on design and visual culture. He received the 1999 AIGA Medal and is the 2011 recipient of the Smithsonian National Design Award.View all posts by Steven Heller →