Frederick Henri Kay Henrion,
RDI,
OBE ( Heinrich Fritz Kohn; 1914–1990), was a
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
-born
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
graphic designer.
Early career
After leaving school, Henrion went to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, and worked in textile design before studying with poster designer
Paul Colin. In 1936, he moved to
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, England where he set up his studio.
World War II
During the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Henrion was
interned
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
on the
Isle of Man
)
, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
as an alien, but subsequently worked for the
Ministry of Information and the US Office of War Information, designing posters for campaigns like
Dig for Victory
Victory gardens, also called war gardens or food gardens for defense, were vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens planted at private residences and public parks in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Germany during World War I ...
, Aid the Wounded, and Grow More Food.
Corporate Identity
![KLM logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/KLM_logo.svg)
After the war Henrion became
art director at Contact Books, and in 1951 he started his own design consultancy named Henrion Design Associates. As well as creating exhibitions, packaging, and book and magazine design, they worked within the then-emerging concept of
corporate identity
A corporate identity or corporate image is the manner in which a corporation, firm or business enterprise presents itself to the public (such as customers and investors as well as employees). The corporate identity is typically visualized by ...
- with Henrion becoming a pioneer in the field.
His clients included:
*
British European Airways
British European Airways (BEA), formally British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974.
BEA operated to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East from airports around the United Kingdom. The a ...
* Blue Circle Cement
*
Coopers & Lybrand
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...
*
Giro
*
KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...
*
London Electricity Board
The London Electricity Board was the public sector utility company responsible for the supply and distribution of electricity to domestic, commercial and industrial consumers in London prior to 1990. It also sold and made available for hire and ...
* The
Post Office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
.
* The
National Theatre
*
Tate & Lyle
Tate & Lyle PLC is a British-headquartered, global supplier of food and beverage ingredients to industrial markets. It was originally a sugar refining business, but from the 1970s it began to diversify, eventually divesting its sugar business i ...
* Wates
Exhibition Design
Alongside his poster, packaging and advertising design work, Henrion was involved in the design of many exhibitions around the world. These included the Publicity Pavilion for the Paris International Fair, and the
MARS
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
(Modern Architectural Research Society) exhibition in London. He also worked on projects for the 1938 Glasgow Empire Exhibition, the 1939
New York World's Fair, and the Air France pavilion at the Tel Aviv
Levant Fair
The Levant Fair (Hebrew: יריד המזרח; Yarid HaMizrach) was an international trade fair held in Tel Aviv during the 1920s and 1930s.
History
Early years
One of the early precursors to the Levant Fair, an exhibition titled the "Exhibiti ...
, 1940,
After the war, Henrion continued to develop a reputation as an exhibition designer. He designed two of the pavilions at the 1951
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people:
...
: The Country and The Natural Scene.
Henrion as an Educator
Henrion lectured at the
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...
from 1955 to 1965, and was head of Visual Communication at the
London College of Printing
The London College of Communication is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. It specialises in media-related subjects including advertising, animation, film, graphic design, photography and sound arts. It has approximately ...
from 1976 to 1979.
He also worked as an art editor for various publications, and contributed to the
Council for Industrial Design's Design magazine.
Affiliations and awards
Henrion was a member of the
Artists' International Association
The Artists' International Association (AIA) was an organisation founded in London in 1933 out of discussion among Pearl Binder, Clifford Rowe, Misha Black, James Fitton, James Boswell, James Holland, Edward Ardizzone, Peter Laszlo Peri'Artis ...
, the Society of Industrial Artists and Designers (later the
Chartered Society of Designers
The Chartered Society of Designers (CSD) is a professional body for designers. It is the only Royal Chartered body of experienced designers. Its membership is multi-disciplinary – representing designers in all design, disciplines including I ...
), and the
Council of Industrial Design
The Design Council, formerly the Council of Industrial Design, is a United Kingdom charity incorporated by Royal Charter. Its stated mission is "to champion great design that improves lives and makes things better".
It was instrumental in the prom ...
; in 1952 he became one of the earliest members of
Alliance Graphique Internationale
Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI) is a club of the world's leading graphic artists and designers. There are 527 members from 43 countries. Its members have been collectively responsible for the identity design of most of the world's top co ...
, in which designers from all over the world could meet and share ideas.
He was elected a
Royal Designer for Industry
Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts (RSA) in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustaine ...
in 1959. He was appointed
MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
in 1951 and elevated to
OBE in 1985.
Henrion was closely involved with design institutions such as the
Council of Industrial Design
The Design Council, formerly the Council of Industrial Design, is a United Kingdom charity incorporated by Royal Charter. Its stated mission is "to champion great design that improves lives and makes things better".
It was instrumental in the prom ...
(later the Design Council) and
ICOGRADA
The International Council of Design (ICoD; formerly known as ico-D, International Council of Communication Design or Icograda, which was formerly an initialism for International Council of Graphic Design Associations) is an international organisa ...
(International Council of Graphic Design Associations).
Personal life
Henrion married the British sculptor
Daphne Hardy in 1947. Together they had two sons and a daughter. They separated in the 1970s.
Henrion's Archive and Library
Henrion's archive is held at
The University of Brighton Design Archives. It covers his entire career and comprises correspondence with clients, original artwork, examples of packaging and graphic design and photography. It also includes Henrion's personal library of books on graphic and industrial design, typography and advertising, which is now fully searchable on th
University's Library system.
Photographs of Henrion's work featured at the
Britain Can Make It Exhibition (1946) and The
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people:
...
(1951), have been made available on th
Visual Arts Data Service(VADS), along with examples of his Wartime posters.
Gallery
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henrion, Henri Kay
1914 births
1990 deaths
German graphic designers
German poster artists
German expatriates in France
German expatriates in the United Kingdom
Officers of the Order of the British Empire