Will Burtin was a German graphic designer, known for interrelating design and scientific concepts within his exhibits. He was an influential designer, educator, and theorist in Germany and the United States. He arrived in the United States in 1939 after fleeing Nazism in Germany. In the U.S., he worked for Fortune Magazine and as an educator at Pratt Institute and the Parsons School of Design.
In 1927, Burtin opened his own design studio in Cologne, in which he created booklets, posters, type books, exhibitions, displays, advertising, and movies for German, French, and other clients. He had this studio from 1927 to 1938.
During the war, the Nazi Party was determined to win over the public opinion, which brought Will Burtin name to the party's attention, hoping that he would accept the position of Art Director and supervise creation of propaganda designs. Nazi officials began asking Burtin to work for their cause, while also trying to persuade him to divorce his Jewish wife. In 1937, Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels made an official request for Burtin to become the Ministry's Director of Design. Burtin cited his backlog of private clients in order to buy time.
Burtin's wife Hilde took advantage of this to write an urgent letter to her cousin, Max Munk, in Maryland. She asked him to sponsor the couple's immigration into the United States. Munk responded to Hilde's request by sending an affidavit. The affidavit, dated November 15, 1937, allowed Will and Hilde Burtin to get a U.S. visa. Meanwhile, back in Germany, Burtin was called to Berlin again, this time to meet Adolf Hitler in person. Burtin tried disqualifying himself from working in the Nazi Party by mentioning that his wife Hilde was Jewish. Unfortunately for Burtin, Hitler replied that his wife was not an issue and his first assignment would be to create an exhibit foretelling the impacts of Nazi culture. Again trying to buy time, Burtin asked for a short vacation to think it over. He was honoured, he replied, to be considered for this high-ranking post but he needed this vacation to be well rested prior to taking up his duties for the Nazi Party. Will and Hilde Burtin had already decided under no circumstances would they work for the Nazi Party. They were able to book passage on the Rotterdam and flee to New York City, leaving behind their personal belongings, taking only overnight bags to deceive border guards, and a sample sheet of the typeface Firmin Didot.
After arriving in the United States from Germany, the Burtins settled in New York City. Burtin received a contract with the United States Federal Works Agency, in which he had to create one major exhibit that represented the achievements of five departments in the Federal Works Agency. The FWA required the exhibit to travel, meaning for it to be more than one-dimensional. The FWA taught Burtin how to create these types of designs in order for him to properly have this concept depicted in the exhibit. This is where Burtin first learned how to create three-dimensional designs; this technique helped him created many of his designs to come. In 1939, Burtin began teaching communication and advanced design at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY and later was named chairman of the Department of Visual Communication in 1959.
In 1943, Will Burtin was drafted into the United States Army and assigned to the Office of Strategic Services. Burtin was assigned to create gun manuals for the U.S. Air Force and Army Air Force. The manual was called Gunner's Information File: Flexible Gunnery.
As World War II was ending, Burtin was recruited by the publisher of Fortune Magazine, straight from the Army. According to the publisher, it was in the "nation's interest" to let Burtin leave the army early to work for the magazine. He was recruited for the position of the Art Director, in which he remained from 1945 to 1949. Fortune did allow Burtin to do freelance work on the side which led to his partnership with the Upjohn Company and many others, such as Eastman Kodak, IBM, the Smithsonian, Mead Paper, Union Carbide, Herman Miller Furniture, and United States Information Agency. He was the designer and consultant on many of these clients' projects. Burtin conducted his freelance work through his design studio he opened up with Hilda in New York City.
In 1962, Burtin was able to gain Eastman Kodak as another major client. Burtin's work with Eastman Kodak included new construction techniques and a unique roof design. The goal was to create the illusion that Kodak's roof was a sea of clouds adults and children could walk on. These new techniques and designs brought considerable attention to Burtin's Eastman Kodak Pavilion at the 1964–1965 World's Fair. According to The Will Burtin Papers, the pavilion included an "eighty foot high photo tower and moon deck". Due to constant dispute with Kodak, Burtin's agreement with the company was ceased before the pavilion was officially built; the Concrete Industry Board gave Burtin a special award in 1964 for its design.
Union Carbide was developing uranium to make nuclear fuel; therefore the company launched a huge campaign surrounding this and requested Burtin to design "The Atom in Action". His exhibit was showcased at Union Carbide's headquarters in New York City and represented the physics of nuclear energy.
Burtin took the position as art director of Upjohn Company's publication Scope, while still art directing for Fortune, but did leave Fortune the same year. Scope was a magazine dedicated to conveying medical, scientific and pharmaceutical information.
Burtin received many awards for his designs. He received the Art Directors Club medal in 1939, 1941, 1955 and 1958. He received the AMA award in 1958 for his exhibit of The Cell. In 1971, Burtin was awarded a gold medal from AIGA for all his successful contributions to the field of design. He was inducted into the Art Directors Club Hall of Fame in 1974.
In January 1961, Burtin remarried the graphic designer Cipe Pineles, a long time family friend. Burtin and his daughter Carol moved in with Pineles because their house had too many sad memories of Hilda Burtin. Pineles later adopted Carol in 1973, after the passing of Will Burtin.
© 2020. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Will Burtin or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only
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Mr. Will Burtin
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1940, The Architectural Forum, Design Decade
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1944 Position Firing section of the Gunner's Information File
Air Forces Manual No. 20
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Fortune magazine cover, October 1946
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Spread of “Fortune", July 1946
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The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947
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| The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947 |
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| The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947 |
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| The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947 |
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| The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947 |
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| The American Bazaar, FORTUNE November 1947 |
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1950, Florida issue, cover
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1951, Scope cover
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1952, Graphis
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| 1952, Graphis |
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| 1952, Graphis |
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Scope Magazine, Cover, Spring 1953
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Scope magazine Cover, vol. IV, no, 3, Fall, 1954
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1955, I Grew A Whole Inch Ad
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1955, Scope" 'Design and Science', doctor's Magazine,
internal graphic pages, for Upjohn
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1958, IBM Think Magazine, cover
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1958, "The Cell” exhibit
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1960, Metabolism- The Cycle of Life” exhibition
Burtin's first electronic exhibit sculpture
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1960, Burtin narrating “The Brain” exhibit at the
American Medical Association meeting, Miami
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1960, The Brain
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1960, The Cell monograph
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1965, Vision 65, cover
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Will Burtin in the Present, Book
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Will Burtin in the Present, inside spread
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| Will Burtin in the Present, inside spread |
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