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Hans Rudolf BosshardSix variations on a circular theme / - The Musical Proportions of the Circle -1967
1967
About the Item
Hans Rudolf Bosshard (*1929 Balm-Lottstetten), Six variations on a circular theme, 1967. Portfolio with inserted cover sheet and six color woodcuts on thin Japanese paper. Copy no. 6/10. Sheet dimensions 64 cm (height) x 45 cm (width). Woodcuts each signed “Hans Bosshard” in lead, dated “[19]67” and numbered.
- Folder somewhat dusty and bumped, sheets very occasionally minimally foxed, the first graphic with a crease in the margin, otherwise in very good condition.
- The Musical Proportions of the Circle -
With the musical terminology given in the title, "Variations on a Theme," Hans Rudolf Bossard makes it clear that the six depictions are not to be regarded as a sequence alone, but interlock like a sequence of notes. The circle is not dissolved into broad layers of lines in a 'free expression', but is broken down according to precise principles into interrelated moments of surface structure, which - as illustrated on the cover sheet - together form a circular shape. The individual states of division are given a rhythmic, melodic variance through the respective color contrast, which in turn contrasts with the color relationships of the other sheets. In this way, Bossard activates musical principles for the minimalist Op Art of the time, whereby his sheets develop a special effect through the intensity of the colors, since Bossard did not produce silkscreens or lithographs as usual, but woodcuts.
About the artist
In 1944, at the age of fifteen, Hans Rudolf Bosshard began an apprenticeship as a typesetter in Schaffhausen, which he completed in 1948. Since then, typography has been a defining leitmotif in Bosshard's artistic work, both in practice and in theory. For 30 years he taught typography at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Zurich and published his findings in various textbooks: Technical Foundations of Type Production (1980), Mathematical Foundations of Type Production (1985), Typography - Type - Readability (1996), and The Typographic Raster (2000).
As a visual artist, he initially worked in an expressionist style. However, the works of Richard Paul Lohse and Max Bill, which inspired him, made it clear that the geometric-mathematical conciseness already applied in typography held an artistic potential that Bossard began to exploit. Throughout his life, however, he remained faithful to the woodcut.
"Not a single one of his compositions is speculative.”
Hans Jörg Wüger
GERMAN VERSION
Hans Rudolf Bosshard (*1929 Balm-Lottstetten), Sechs Variationen über ein Kreisthema, 1967. Mappe mit einliegendem Deckblatt und sechs Farbholschnitten auf dünnem Japanpapier. Exemplar Nr. 6/10. Blattmaße 64 cm (Höhe) x 45 cm (Breite). Holzschnitte jeweils in Blei mit „Hans Bosshard“ signiert, auf „[19]67“ datiert und nummeriert.
- Mappe etwas angestaubt und bestoßen, Blätter ganz vereinzelt minimal stockfleckig, die erste Grafik mit Knickspur im Randbereich, ansonsten in sehr gutem Zustand
- Die musikalischen Proportionen des Kreises -
Mit der im Titel gegebenen musikalischen Begrifflichkeit, ‚Variationen über ein Thema‘, verdeutlicht Hans Rudolf Bossard, dass die sechs Darstellungen nicht allein als Abfolge zu betrachten sind, sondern wie eine Tonfolge ineinandergreifen. Dabei wird der Kreis nicht in einer ‚freien Expression‘ in breite Strichlagen aufgelöst, vielmehr handelt es sich eine nach exakten Prinzipien erfolgende Aufgliederung des Kreises in zusammenhänge Flächenstrukturmomente, die – wie auf dem Deckblatt veranschaulicht – zusammen eine Kreisform bilden. Die einzelnen Aufgliederungszustände erhalten durch den jeweiligen Farbkontrast, der wiederum mit den Farbverhältnissen der anderen Blätter kontrastiert, eine Rhythmisierung der melodischen Varianz. Damit aktiviert Bossard musikalische Prinzipien für die minimalistisch ausgerichtete Op-Art der Zeit, wobei seine Blätter durch die Intensität der Farben eine besondere Wirkkraft entfalten, da Bossard nicht – wie üblich – Siebdrucke oder Lithographien, sondern Holzschnitte anfertigt hat.
zum Künstler
Mit fünfzehn Jahren nahm Hans Rudolf Bosshard 1944 eine Lehre als Schriftsetzer in Schaffhausen auf, die er 1948 abschloss. Seitdem ist die Typographie in praktischer wie theoretischer Hinsicht ein bestimmendes Leitmotiv in Bossards künstlerischem Schaffen. 30 Jahre unterrichtete er unter anderem an der Kunstgewerbeschule für Gestaltung Zürich Typographie und publizierte seine Erkenntnisse in verschiedenen Lehrwerken: Technische Grundlagen zur Satzherstellung (1980), Mathematische Grundlagen zur Satzherstellung (1985), Typografie - Schrift - Lesbarkeit (1996) und Der typografische Raster (2000).
Als bildender Künstler schuf er zunächst in einem expressionistischen Duktus. Die ihn inspirierenden Werke von Richard Paul Lohse und Max Bill verdeutlichten jedoch, dass gerade die in der Typographie bereits zu Anwendung kommende geometrisch-mathematische Prägnanz ein künstlerisches Potenzial birgt, das Bossard fortan auszuschöpfen begann. Dabei blieb er allerdings Zeit seines Lebens dem bereits praktizierten Holzschnitt treu.
„Keine einzige seiner Kompositionen ist spekulativ.“
Hans Jörg Wüger
- Creator:Hans Rudolf Bosshard (1929, Swiss)
- Creation Year:1967
- Dimensions:Height: 25.2 in (64 cm)Width: 17.72 in (45 cm)Depth: 0.79 in (2 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:Berlin, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2438215863152
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