Comments on: Gerd Arntz and the origins of the stick figure

Gerd Arntz and the origins of the stick figure

mediareport — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:35:09 -0800

The Gerd Arntz Web Archive collects graphics from the career of the man who - in creating over 4000 Isotypes for social scientist Otto Neurath in 1930s Red Vienna - can make a serious claim to be the inventor of the modern stick figure. He attacked the corruption of German society as the Nazis rose to power, then joined Neurath in an attempt to create a transnational visual language that bore later fruit in Otl Aicher's 1972 Olympic pictograms and the AIGA passenger/pedestrian symbol signs. [via Mark Larson and Austin Kleon]

By: netbros

netbros — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:40:16 -0800

He was the icon maker before there were computers. Thanks mediareport.

By: jouke

jouke — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:40:41 -0800

Yep, that's us Dutch. nice, thanks

By: Smart Dalek

Smart Dalek — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:17:48 -0800

With all due respect, Émile Cohl's characters predate Neurath's "modernizing" of stick figures.

By: Grimp0teuthis

Grimp0teuthis — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:51:24 -0800

Awesome! I wish I had someplace to use these symbols...

By: Kinbote

Kinbote — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:19:46 -0800

Tangentially-related: from 1979's Anarchy Comics #2, Paul Mavrides and Jay Kinney present: Kultur Dokuments (pdf), featuring The Picto Family and The Political Bizarros, in which we see the newly-radicalized proletarian Pictos seize control of their graphic style, and a fun Archie parody. And, on further exploration, previously.

By: tellurian

tellurian — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:25:26 -0800

In the industry category - Cut the bull?

By: carter

carter — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:37:27 -0800

Cool stuff, thanks mediareport!

By: mediareport

mediareport — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 06:49:47 -0800

With all due respect, Émile Cohl's characters predate Neurath's "modernizing" of stick figures. Well, with all due respect, you rock. I love early film and *really* love early animation and had never heard of Cohl before. That first link is brilliant stuff. Thanks, Smart Dalek.

By: peacay

peacay — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:09:40 -0800

Thanks mediareport (+ Smart Dalek). Great post! (also: this)