147 / 254
ZERO (HANS SCHLEGER, 1898-1976)
188
●
THINK AHEAD / WRITE INSTEAD. 1945.
28
3
/
4
x36 inches, 73x91
1
/
2
cm. St. Michael’s Press Ltd., London.
Condition B+: tear in upper image; minor creases and tears at edges; creases in image; slight darkening in
bottom margin. Paper.
Schleger lived and worked in both Berlin and New York before settling in London in 1932. A pioneer
of Modernism, he worked extensively for Shell Oil and the London Transport System, two companies
which had artistically progressive sensibilities. He also designed a number of posters for the GPO
(General Post Office). “Hans Schleger was one of the supreme practitioners of the floating world of
dreams, desires, possessions and consumption. His pioneering work was done in 1920s and 1930s, the
heroic age of modernist advertising and publicity designs” (Zero p. 11).
[600/900]
ZERO (HANS SCHLEGER, 1898-1976)
189
MARTINI / WITH GIN THIS IS IT. 1948.
30x20 inches, 76
1
/
4
x50
3
/
4
cm.
Condition B / B+: overpainting, abrasions and restoration in image. Paper.
The British branch of Martini had high standards for its advertising, and worked closely with the
leading British advertising agency, W.S. Crawford, to achieve their desired results. The company’s
creative director, Ashley Havinden, designed several posters for Martini himself, while also selecting
other talented artists, like Zero, to work on the demanding commissions. Here, Zero only suggests a
glass and a bottle, showing just enough of the product label to be legible, forcing the viewer to
complete the mental connection and reinforce the brand name. Zero p. 69, The Poster 442, Bernstein
p. 144.
[500/750]
189