Hoch und Tiefbau is a Swiss construction brand whose mark was originally designed by Walter Sigg in 1940, according to the Logo Nature logotype archive, which lists the designer and year alongside the entry for the engineering and construction firm.[1] The same attribution appears in the Logo & Brand database, which describes the symbol as an outline-style, rounded mark with a Switzerland outline shape.[2]
Design and History
Walter Sigg (1914-1989) was a Swiss graphic designer born in Biel who trained at the Zurich School of Applied Arts (Kunstgewerbeschule). He worked at Orell Füssli, then as chief graphic designer at a Swiss advertising agency before going freelance in 1946.[3] The Hoch und Tiefbau mark dates to 1940, during Sigg’s pre-freelance period.[2]
The name “Hoch- und Tiefbau” is a generic German term for structural and civil engineering, and it was also used as the title of a Swiss construction trade journal published in Zurich from 1919 to 1975.[4] The journal served as the official organ of the Swiss Master Builders’ Association (Schweizerischer Baumeisterverband).[5] The logo archive entry, however, identifies the mark as belonging to a construction brand rather than to the publication itself.[1]
Meaning and Symbolism
Documented descriptions of the mark’s symbolism are limited. The Logo & Brand entry notes that the symbol uses an outline treatment with a rounded shape and a Switzerland outline, but it does not provide an interpretation of specific elements.[2] No primary source detailing the intended meaning of the Hoch und Tiefbau mark has been located.
Typography and Design
No reliable source documents the specific typeface used in the Hoch und Tiefbau wordmark or the exact construction method of the symbol. The available evidence confirms only that the mark was designed by Walter Sigg in 1940 and that it employs an outline, rounded style.[2]
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