Graphic designer, author, publisher.
Studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Zurich under Ernst Keller and at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Berlin under O H W Hadank. From 1938 onwards: Grafisches Atelier und Werbeberatung Amstutz & Herderg in Zurich. From 1942 onwards: editor and designer for “Graphis” magazine and from 1952 for “Graphis Annual” and further publications on applied design. 1986: The “Graphis” enterprise is sold and Herderg leaves. 1987: presented with awards by Parson’s School of Design and the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA).
Herderg’s legacy is now recognized as the basis for contempory publisher. His talent was to find the right content and contributors for spreading what the best design could be. It’s always surprising to see the different between Herdeg’s graphic work and what he published at the same time. He was a better publsher than designer.
A very complete biography can be found on the AIGA site, written by Steven Heller.