Christian Chruxin

Christian Chruxin (*1937, Hanover– 2006, Berlin) was a typographer, graphic designer and gallerist, as well as a scenographer and exhibition designer.

After studying at the Werkkunstschule in Kassel from 1958–60, Chruxin moved to Berlin, where he continued his studies at Meisterschule für Graphik und Buchgewerbe until he graduated in 1961.

From 1963 to 1966, he and his wife Barbara Block ran the gallery »situationen 60« at Frobenstrasse 17, focussing on graphic art, visual poetry and avant-garde positions from the first half of the 20th century. The opening exhibition, which was dedicated to Henryk Berlewi, was followed by events and exhibitions with works by Bernhard Höke, Konrad Bayer, Lucio Fontana, Ferdinand Kriwet, Erich Buchholz, Jürgen Graaff, Wolfgang Schmidt, Wolfgang Ludwig and Tomas Schmit, among others.

In addition to his own exhibition design, he designed the exhibition architecture for Literarischen Colloquiums »Fotografiertes Theater auf kleinen Bühnen« (1964), he conceived the exhibition »Wasser – das Paradoxon in der bildende Kunst am Beispiel Wasser« (1980) of Berliner Festspiele gallery, as well as several exhibitions for the Künstlerhaus Bethanien.  In the 1970s and 1980s, he developed set designs and costume designs for ZDF and Radio Bremen. Central to his oeuvre was his work as a graphic designer and typographer, designing publications for Wolfgang Fietkau Verlag, Literarisches Colloquium Berlin, Haus am Waldsee, Verlag Neue Kritik, Rowohlt Verlag, Edition Voltaire, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, MIT Press and the Kunstbibliothek Berlin. Chruxin has been honoured with several awards for his work. He designed the exhibition catalogue »net_condition: Art and Global Media« for ZKM. Chruxin taught graphic design and visual communication at the State Academy of Fine Arts Berlin from 1971–77.

Christian Chruxin's estate has been at the ZKM | Karlsruhe since 2016. This comprises around seven linear metres (in an unedited state) and is completed by his library, which is mainly made up of specimen copies, with around 600 publications. In addition to around 100 posters, manuscripts and correspondence, there are collections of photographs and materials that were used for his designs.