The Foire Internationale de Bruxelles (FIB), also known as the Brussels International Industries Fair, was an annual trade fair held at the Heysel exhibition halls in Brussels. Its visual identity evolved through the mid-20th century, with posters and publicity materials created by notable Belgian graphic designers.
Design and History
The fair’s publicity in the 1960s was handled by graphic designer Julian Key, who created posters for the 33rd edition in 1960 and the 38th edition in 1965. The 1960 poster, described as being in a “Modern Swiss design style,” features blocks of red and black dominating a white background. The 1965 poster, for the 38th International Industries Fair, uses a “sleek, minimalist style” with a ribbon tied around a pointer finger, described as a “clever easter egg of the Belgian flag.” Both posters were printed by J. Degreve.[1][2]
Earlier in the fair’s history, the “belleman” (town crier) figure appeared on FIB posters from 1921 onward, designed by painter Toussaint. A bronze statue of this figure, sculpted by René Reper in 1970, was erected at the entrance of the main exhibition palace in Laken, Brussels. The statue’s blue stone pedestal was designed by Luc Van Malderen, a Belgian graphic designer and teacher at La Cambre.[3]
Van Malderen, who studied at La Cambre under Joris Minne and graduated in 1951, opened his own graphic design studio in 1958. He is known for creating the Picto system, a set of 98 signaletic symbols, in 1968.[4][5]
While Van Malderen’s documented connection to the FIB is the pedestal design for the 1970 statue, the claim that he designed the fair’s logo in 1965 could not be verified through available sources. The 1965 fair’s publicity materials, including a multilingual pamphlet, are preserved in archival collections but do not confirm a specific logo designer.[6]
Meaning and Symbolism
The 1965 poster’s ribbon motif, tied around a finger, incorporates the colors of the Belgian flag as a subtle national reference. The earlier 1960 poster used bold red and black blocks in a Swiss-influenced geometric style, reflecting the international character of the fair.[2][1]
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