Végh Gusztáv

Gusztáv Végh was a graphic designer and painter. He was an influential character in the field of commercial design for many decades (between the 1910s and the 1950s).

Végh came from a rich family, which made it possible for him to attend the academy of Munich. His first poster designs appeared in the 1910s. His early works are typical Hungarian Art Nouveau posters. He uses flat shapes, decorative contour lines, and beautiful typography. His favorite pattern in this period was the decorative floral ornament, usually built up from roses.

Végh designed posters during World War I. for advertising newspapers (like Érdekes Újság or Képes Hét) and charity campaigns and events. In 1919, he created some political posters for the Hungarian Soviet Republic. One of these works combines the decorative Art Nouveau with the monumental style of the leftist political posters (Szociális termelést), another is a clearly typographic composition.

In 1920 he designed one poster for the new political system which fitted into the Justice for Hungary campaign that was acting against the disadvantageous peace treaty.

In 1924, his paintings were successfully exhibited in Paris, in the Salone d’Automne. In the 1920s he designed many different posters for safety campaigns, exhibitions, etc. This time he also taught at the famous private art school, Atelier. With students of Atelier he took part in exhibitions and events of advertising artists. In the mid-1920s the clear modernism and the decorative and playful Art Deco both influenced his works: his design for Pick Szalámi is a good example of his transitional style. A nearly abstract, flat, Constructivist manner combined with Art Deco shapes appear on one great design by him for an applied art exhibition (it might have functioned as the cover of the catalogue).

Végh remained a very influential graphic artist in the 1940s, while he was designing commercial posters. These combine beautiful modern fonts with softly painted forms. After 1945, his style was influenced by Konecsni’s impressive propaganda designs. He mostly worked on packaging designs by that time, but he also produced effective political posters.

Végh was an excellent designer of emblems, logos and packages: he re-created the logo of the journal Nyugat in the 1910s, later he invented the heading of Esti Hírlap, the packages of Darling cigarettes and Zwack spirits, or the emblem of Magyar Hét (Hungarian Week). In 1948 he created a famous emblem for the centenary of the 1848 revolution.                                                                                                   .