Richard Paul Lohse

Who was Richard Paul Lohse?

Richard Paul Lohse was a Swiss painter and graphic artist and one of the main representatives of the concrete and constructive art movements.

Richard Paul Lohse was born in Zürich in 1902. His wish to study in Paris was thwarted due to his difficult economic circumstances. In 1918 he joined the advertising agency Max Dalang where he trained to become an advertising designer. Lohse, then an autodidact, painted expressive, late cubist still lifes.

In the 1930s his work as a graphic artist and book designer places him among the pioneers of modern Swiss graphic design; in paintings of this period he worked on curved and diagonal constructions. Success eventually allowed him to establish his own graphic design studio in Zürich.

He combined art with a political and moral awareness, which led him to be an activist for immigrants. In the 1930s, he was actively involved in protests, which were illegal under the government of the time. He continued to protest until the beginning of World War II.

In 1937 Lohse, with Leo Leuppi, co-founded Allianz, an association of Swiss modern artists.