Birkhauser's delightful poster of a giant, red pencil for the Globus department store was one of the very first Object Posters that did not feature the product at all. Rather, Birkhauser used a clever advertising line and a supergraphic of the pencil, complete with carved point and ding, to attract attention for a Zurich department store. It was so striking on city streets that it won a Swiss Poster of the Year award in 1942 and continues to be used in modified form to this day.
Birkhauser's pencil started a playful gag among the Object Poster artists. Several of them, including Brun and Leupin, "quoted" from Birkhauser by including carved red pencils in their posters into the Fifties.
This poster is in MoMA's permanent collection.
