Donald Brun

Donald Brun was the oldest of a small group of designers from Basel, all followers of Niklaus Stoecklin. He was trained in a studio in Basel, at the Allgemeine Gewerbeschule there, and later at the Akademie für Freie und Angewandte Kunst in Berlin (with the professors O.W.H. Hadank and Böhm).

He became an independent designer in 1933. This was the beginning of four decades of poster design at the highest level, full of humour, making use of an impressive range of techniques.

He was entrusted the design of his nation's pavilions for the national exhibitions in Zürich 1939 and Lausanne 1964, as well as at the Brussels Expo 1958. He also regularly contributed exhibition stands for the Schweizer Mustermesse in Basel. The chemical industry of Basel was another major client. His painterly approach to poster design was well demonstrated in his series on Swissair destinations. Donald Brun also taught at the Kunstgewerbeschule Basel (1947-74); his contribution there was very influential. His works were honoured with numerous awards and exhibitions and are in the permanent collections of several international museums.