This 1958 original travel poster by the Swiss design duo Gyger & Klopfenstein captures the alpine village of Mürren with arresting clarity and a distinctly modern edge. Situated at 1650 meters in the Bernese Oberland, Mürren is presented not just as a destination, but as a high-altitude ideal — a crystalline harmony of nature, geometry, and visual rhythm.
At the top, bold block letters spell MÜRREN in stark yellow and black — a typographic feat of sharp contrast and dynamic shadow, a nod to the International Typographic Style then emerging across Swiss graphic design. The central image delivers a breathtaking panoramic of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau peaks, whose jagged, snow-covered faces form a rugged counterpoint to the clean lines above and below.
But it’s the inclusion of a vivid red alpine carnation against a pale, minimalist foreground that completes the composition — a masterstroke of design tension. This burst of saturated floral color injects warmth, life, and national symbolism into a scene otherwise dominated by stoic naturalism.
Beneath the surface of this image lies the ethos of 1950s Swiss tourism: clarity, accessibility, and prestige. This was the golden age of the mountain as a luxury — not wilderness, but curated splendor. Mürren, reachable only by cable car or mountain train, promised visitors serenity with a view, untouched yet meticulously presented.
More than a travel ad, this is a perfectly composed invitation to ascend — visually, physically, and philosophically. Today, it stands as a testament to the power of mid-century graphic design to make nature feel timeless and immediate.
Tourism - Mountain - Switzerland
Printed by Polygraphic in Laupen
Good condition, dirt, one tear
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